


A Friend Indeed

by Anon_E_Muss



Series: Friends [1]
Category: Kung Fu Panda (Movies)
Genre: (Slams table) Po and Tigress have a healthy relationship dammit!, AU, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Childhood Friends, Childhood Friends, Chinese Mythology & Folklore, Chinese New Year, Constructive Criticism Welcome, Cross-Posted on Wattpad, Elements from LoA, F/M, Fluff, Found Family, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Major Character Injury, Master Shifu is not nice., No beta we die like the rhino guards., Non-Graphic Violence, Podfic Welcome, Secrets of the Scroll AU, Slow Burn, Stairs, Team as Family, Teenage Drama, Teenagers, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, We stan healthy relationships in this household., Winter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-12
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:15:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 30,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26427715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anon_E_Muss/pseuds/Anon_E_Muss
Summary: A significantly younger Tigress meets a significantly younger Po. How does this change their destinies?OR:Tigress walks down to the valley intent on biting a chef’s head off, and leaves with a new acquaintance.
Relationships: Crane/Mei Ling (Kung Fu Panda), Oogway & Tigress (Kung Fu Panda), Po & Tigress (Kung Fu Panda), Po/Tigress (Kung Fu Panda), Shifu & Tigress (Kung Fu Panda)
Series: Friends [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1947847
Comments: 96
Kudos: 168





	1. A Meeting, A Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> For those that don't know about Secrets of the Scroll, the basic plot is that the Furious Five were originally formed when Shifu got food poisoning by eating from Mr. Ping's noodle shop on the same day that Po had to take over. This fic pics up after the end of the short. Might continue if enough people are interested. Read; one person is actually interested.)

Tigress was in a bad mood. Granted, that tended to happen quite a lot, but knowing that didn't really help. Tigress had a few more new training mates. Good. Shifu's gotten over his food poisoning. Even better. All the same, some incompetent chef had gotten him sick in the first place. And an accident like that simply could not stand. (She was in too bad of a mood to consider that they simply could have chosen a different take-out place.) 

Oogway, of course, had been frustrating blithe about it. "There are no accidents," he was always fond of saying. For as much love as she held for the old turtle, she sometimes found her patience wearing thin with him around. It would probably get worse with the carefree, oh-so-funny Monkey around.

She didn't quite know what to think of her new allies either. Sure, she had picked them on complete accident (which, _of course_ , Oogway had to say didn't exist), but they had proven themselves to have impressive potential. However it turned out, she would have to at least make an attempt to put up with their eccentricities; and for that, she would need every ounce of patience, she could give them. Better to get her frustrations out of her system now before they became a problem.

She stopped a random citizen and pulled out the slip of paper that set today's disaster dominoes in motion. "Could you tell me where this is?"

* * *

Po's day had been rough at first. Poisoning a master of the Jade Palace had to be one of the worst mistakes that he had made, but at least he had discovered what he wanted to do with his life. Kung Fu looked hard, but it was so cool. Something about it spoke to him far more than what he had wrote down earlier that day. (Seriously, in what world could he make it as a _comedian_.) Even better, his dad had been ecstatic for all of the free advertising that resulted. Po chuckled to himself as he started to close up the shop. Leave it to his dad to look on the bright side of business.

He was just wondering how he was going to do some research on Kung Fu when he saw her. Just a flash of orange fur and tan clothes out of the corner of his eye at first. He took a quick glance on autopilot. "Sorry, but the shop's closed for the day. Maybe try again tomorrow."

"I've tried your product," she said, arms crossed. 'I'm not impressed."

Po quickly snapped around. _Not impressed?_ Po's dad's noodles were the best in the entire Valley of Peace! He opened his mouth, fully intent on defending his family honor, only for it to hang limply as he noticed just who it was that was speaking. "You're. . . you're that strong tiger lady that kicked that boar in the face. Like, _a lot._ " This had to be some kind of heavenly gift, or a dream. (He'd had far weirder dreams in comparison.)

The obvious admiration in the panda's voice surprised her. Her anger disappeared in surprise, but only for a minute. "And _you_ must be the chef that poisoned my master," she said, trying her best to imitate one of Shifu's infamous disappointed stares.

Po felt his mouth void itself of any and all moisture. He took it back; clearly, this was divine retribution, or failing that, a nightmare. (Which was almost as bad as the one he had that one time about radishes. Seriously, _why radishes?_ His dad didn't even cook with them.) Weakly, he raised his paw in a wave and let out a nervous wheeze of a laugh. "Uhm. . . Hi?. . . Welcome to. . . Ping Dynasty Noodle House. I'm sorry that . . . well I'm sorry you got stuck with me as your cook. Heh heh."

Tigress raised an eyebrow and pulled out the advertisement that Oogway had found that morning. "I'm surprised you can afford to have these made given the quality of your noodles."

Po drew himself up to full house. "Hey. . ." he said. "Just because _I'm_ a terrible cook doesn't mean the restaurant is bad."

"Aren't you the cook?"

"No," Po said, waving his arms out, "no, no. . . Well, not normally. My dad had to get some supplies from out of town, so I had to look after the shop. He's the one that normally cooks." Po turned back around and started to dig through a box. "If you're willing to give this noodle shop the chance it deserves, I can get you a coupon for next time. Half off for a bowl of the Secret Ingredient Soup." He leaned further in. "Just. . . give me a moment to find it." His tongue slipped out and pressed itself against his lips as he leaned further into the box. "C'mere you little. . ."

Tigress rolled her eyes and walked closer. "If you don't cook, then what do you normally do here?"

"Ah-Ha! Gotcha!" Po exclaimed, falling out of the box and onto his behind. He was looking directly up at her. Without bothering to get up, he held up the coupon, which she took after a moment's consideration. "I bring the noodles to the tables, and mop up at the end of the day," He answered, getting up. "Speaking of, can you hand me that bucket over there?"

Tigress did, tempted to huff. "How do you fit between the tables? Can you even stand up in the kitchen?"

Po grimaced as he started to mop. He wanted to believe that she was merely being curious, but that was not a question that his self-esteem needed to hear. Especially not after today. "The answer to that gets closer and closer to 'I don't' every year."

Tigress' gaze shifted uncomfortably. She wasn't really sure what to say to that. She was tempted to say that she had dealt with a similar problem when she was younger. She had come here to torment the cook until her anger was spent, but the idea seemed to have lost it's appeal. Thankfully, she was saved from awkward silence by a voice calling out from the second floor of the noodle shop. "Po!" a squeaky voice called. "Who are you talking to down there?"

"Nobody, dad!" Po called back. Tigress stared levelly at Po until he changed his answer. "Uh. . . not nobody! Somebody! Somebody from the Jade Palace!"

Po's father gave a loud scoff, audible from where she stood. "And next you're going to tell me Master Shifu himself is here!"

"Not Shifu," Po answred. "One of his students, I think!" Po quickly and turned back to Tigress. "You are one of Shifu's students, right?"

"That's _Master_ Shifu to you. And yes, I study under him directly."

"Yeah! She's one of his students. She said her name was. . ." Po again, turned back to her. "Uh, what's your name?"

"Tigress," she said, starting to lose track of the conversation.

"Tigress!" Po finished his thought, shouting to his father. Po then pulled up short. "Tigress? Just Tigress?"

"It's common for Kung Fu masters to go by their species name," Tigress said with mild irritation.

"So does that mean you're a master," Po asked excitedly.

Tigress's eyes shifted to the side. "Not yet. But soon."

"That's so _awesome_ ," Po said excitedly. "Hey, you think you could maybe show me a few things? I mean it just _wicked_ cool how you just-" Po neglected to finish his sentence in favor of a poor man's imitation of what Kung Fu looked like, complete with odd noises that would be better suited for comedy than martial arts.

A large part of Tigress was tempted to roll her eyes, which she may or may not have done. A smaller part of her that only rarely showed its head was tempted to laugh. The larger part of Tigress was intrigued, however. Something about this panda's enthusiasm was interesting. She didn't know whether or not to agree until Po tripped over his bucket and banged his chin on one of the tables. 

Tigress walked over as Po rubbed his chin, complaining about the possibility of a splinter. She extended a hand and helped him up. "I'll. . . think about it."

A head poked out of the windows at the sound of Po's fall. "Po!? Are you alright?!" Tigress looked up and saw. . . a goose. Surprising, but she supposed it made a bit of sense for the kitchen to not fit the panda if it was made for a goose. "Oh my gods, you weren't joking," Mr. Ping said to himself. Tigress wouldn't have heard it if her ears were any less sensitive.

"Yeah, I'm fine!" Po said as Mr. Ping scurried down the stairs.

Mr. Ping came out only a few moments later, quickly waddling up to Tigress. "I'm dreadfully sorry about that little incident earlier this morning. I can promise you that the noodles from this establishment will be better than ever! Just as soon as I get Po up to speed on how to cook."

Po gave a sheepish smile, before it grew into a more genuine one as an idea came to him. "Hey, maybe we can compare how much we've improved in cooking and Kung Fu the next time you come around."

Tigress looked away. it was rare that people wanted to actually talk with her, and yet this panda had just assumed it would happen again. "Perhaps," she answered. She turned back to the both of them. "Goodbye for now then, Pings."

Po scoffed. "Please, Ping is my dad. Call me Po."

Tigress turned to leave. "Alright then. . . Po."

It only took her a few moments to came back to the palace steps. As she started to climb them, she took out the coupon, inspecting it, turning it over, as if it would unveil some sort of philosophical truth. "Perhaps," She repeated to herself.


	2. A Road

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Tigress panics, Po panics, and Oogway is delightfully unhelpful.

Tigress was warring with herself each and every step down from the Jade Palace. On one step she would tell herself that it was stupid; that there was no way that it would be worth it, that she should just turn back now before she ended up wasting her afternoon. The next step down, and her thoughts would do a complete U-turn. She should go, if for nothing else than getting a cheap meal. If she had tried it, and it still was terrible, then she would have every right to never go their again. But did she really want to deal with that panda's childishness? Did she really mind?

Soon enough she was halfway down the massive stairway, and paused. One more step, and it would officially be easier to go to the noodle shop than it would be to walk her way back up to the Palace. If she was actually going to turn around, now would be the time to do it. She stood in her conflict for a while before a voice called from the side. "Looking for directions?"

She jumped in her skin and whirled to the side before seeing who it was. "Oh! Master Oogway, I didn't see you there."

"Good evening," Master Oogway greeted. He unperched himself from one of the boulders on the side of the stairs. "Where are you headed, young one?"

"I. . . was just trying to figure that out." Tigress didn't know exactly what it was, but it easy to be honest around Oogway. Even if his mysticisms annoyed her sometimes.

"If you don't know where to head, forward is usually a good place to start," Oogway said with a smile. "After all, you're free to walk anywhere, so long as you don't walk backwards." Oogway laughed a little to himself. Tigress had a feeling that there was a message in there somewhere, but didn't quite feel like sorting it out right now.

Tigress watched Oogway walk a few steps uphill before calling out. "Master Oogway, wait!" The turtle paused and swung his head to look to the young tiger. "Would. . . would you like to have some noodles for lunch?"

Master Oogway smiled. "I would be delighted," he said. He made a show of relying on his staff to scale the palace steps. "You'll have to be forgive me though, my joints aren't what they used to be," he said, like he _wouldn't_ be able to lay Tai Lung flat in a rematch.

Despite herself, Tigress smiled.

* * *

Po had been anxious for most of the day. Learning how to cook with his dad's supervision had been a slow and steady process. Most of the bowls had at least two or three things wrong with them, but Po's dad had never given up on his son. To his credit, Po's dishes were getting (well. . . _better_ was a bit of a strong word in Po's opinion) progressively less dangerous.

Mr. Ping had stepped in and salvaged what orders he could, and cooked what Po could not. The lunch crowd had been held up a fair bit, and the food might not have been quite up to stuff, but Po was pretty sure only half of the customers had noticed. Mostly.

Hearing his dad compliment what he was doing well however, had made the entire process worth it. At least it did, until he saw a familiar patch of orange and black stripes. She was back.

"Oh gods," he cried. Acting on fight-or-flight instinct, he ducked behind the counter, not that it could his entire mass.

Po's attempt to turn invisible had, of course, been noticed by Mr. Ping. "Po?" he asked, leaning over to look at his son more on his level, "what are you doing?"

"She's back," Po said, slightly panicked.

"Who?"

" _Her_ ," Po said, not bothering to sit up to at least gesture at who he was referring to. "You know, the- the kung fu tiger girl."

Mr. Ping looked up from the counter to see that his son was right. the 'kung fu tiger girl' was indeeed back, and this time leading an elderly turtle through the door. (Although know that Mr. Ping thought about it, he had never really seen a young turtle.) "Oh look, she's brought company this time!" he said excitedly.

" _What_?!" Po exclaimed, hitting his head on the counter. "Ooh- ow." He peaked his head out from under, just enough to take a look. ("You're not invisible, Po," his dad said flatly.) Po ducked back down. "Oh gods, you're right. What if she told him how terrible my cooking is? What if my cooking is just as bad as last time? _What if it's worse?_ "

"Po," Mr. Ping said. "If you knew you were going to cook, then why did you give her that coupon?"

"I didn't think she'd come back _today_!" Po said. "I thought she would put the coupon in her pocket and then forget about it for a few, I'unno, years, and then _maybe_ come back when I was in my mid-forties. She wasn't supposed to come back _the very next day!_ "

"The coupon expires in a month," Mr. Ping said, unimpressed. After taking a deep breath, Mr. Ping looked down at his son, who had started to suck his thumb. "Po, I want you to listen to me very carefully. You're not going to become a proper chef until you can learn to stop fearing failure. If you never go out there to cook for this specific customer, then you will never stop being afraid. So go, cook, _win_! And when you do, I'll be there to up-sale them for extra dessert to go."

Po sighed. His dad was right. The problem wasn't going to go away until he faced it head on. So those noodles better get ready, 'cause they are about to get _cooked_ by the-

"Am I interrupting something?" Tigress asked.

Po gave a yelp as he was startled out of his thoughts, and once again into the counter. "Ow."

Mr. Ping shook his head as Po climbed out from under. "Not at all. Welcome to Ping Dynasty Noodle House. What can I get you?"

Tigress pulled out the coupon from her pocket. "Two of these, please."

Mr. Ping looked down, letting out an undignified honk when he saw what the coupon was for. "Certainly," he said anyways. "But just so you know, the coupon only works for one bowl to be half off."

"That's fine," the turtle beside her said.

As the two took a seat, father and son took a big gulp, but for vastly different reasons. Mr. Ping whirled to face his son. "You never told me the coupon was for Secret Ingredient Soup!" he squawked.

"I keep saying, I didn't expect her to come _today_."

Mr. Ping closed his eyes. "It's fine," he said for the both of their benefits. "Actually, it's more than fine. This is an _opportunity_ , Po. If you manage to pull this off, we can use this to further the restaurant! We can make loyal customers out of them, keep them coming back with better and better noodles, until they're ready and willing to sell out for the glory of noodle-folk everywhere!"

It was hard to argue with Po's dad when he was in what Po had taken to calling 'King Business Emperor Mode.' "But Dad, I don't know how to make Secret Ingredient Soup. How am I supposed to make them Secret Ingredient Soup if I don't know the secret ingredient?"

Mr. Ping was sucked directly out of his dreams of noodle-ocracy reigning in China. There were more immediate concerns. "I'll take over when the time comes to put the secret ingredient in. Until then, try to cook the best bowl of ordinary noodles you've ever made!"

"Okay," Po said, nodding. "Not like there's much competition there," he added, more to himself.

Mr. Ping put his wings on his hips. "Po, I'm not going to let you touch a single ladle here until I here from your mouth that this is going to work."

"What?"

"You heard me. Is this going to work?"

"Um. . . yeah?"

"Wrong!" Mr. Ping said. "You're supposed to tell me. Now, is this going to work?"

"Yeah."

"I can't hear you."

"Yes!" Po said, slightly annoyed.

"With feeling!"

" _This is going to work!"_ Po said.

"That's my boy!" Mr. Ping said, finally moving to let Po work.

Po went through each step in his head, reciting the instructions to himself as he carried them out. Mr. Ping lent a feather here and there, making sure the noodles were stretched out and double checking the temperature of the broth. The two only bumped into each other once or twice. Finally, the time came to add the mysterious Secret Ingredient.

"Close your eyes," Mr. Ping said as he walked up to the bowls. He paused for a moment. ". . . Are you peeking?"

". . . _No_. . ." Po said, trying to open one eye as discreetly as possible.

Mr. Ping sighed. "Turn around," he said. "And cover your eyes."

"Isn't this a little bit overboard?" Po said, though he turned around anyways.

"You tell me," Mr. Ping said, smiling.

Po sighed in defeat. " _No_. No it's not." There were sounds of the cooking knife being used, though for the life of him, Po could not identify what was being chopped. Something was scrapped around, he thought, maybe. The noodles in the bowls were stirred around.

"Order up!" Mr. Ping said. Po turned around and received the bowls. Mr. Ping shooed him out of the kitchen before he could examine the bowls too closely. Mr. Ping smiled to himself as Po left to deliver the order. One day, he would share the secret of the Secret Ingredient Soup with his son, but not yet. That would have to wait until Po had the Noodle Dream.

* * *

Po quickly set down the bowls on the table, as soon as he had managed to shimmy his way through the other tables, of course. The old turtle had given his thanks, and Tigress inspected the meal before her not suspiciously, but not exactly excitedly. The turtle had no such hesitation, and heartily started to eat.

Was Po sweating? He felt like he was sweating. Was that normal? Sure! Lots of people sweat when their projects are being reviewed by two Kung Fu masters. Was it normal to sweat this much, though? He wasn't quite as sure. What's the worst that could happen? They might not like it? No big deal. It could only bring shame and dishonor on his family's honor. In addition to the shame and dishonor he already acquired when he poisoned Shifu.

"Po!" His dad called. Oh man! Better get back to the kitchen.

* * *

"This is. . . edible," Tigress said, somewhat surprised.

Master Oogway chuckled to himself. "You can taste the passion behind these noodles."

"Maybe your taste buds are more sensitive than mine," Tigress said not unkindly.

Despite her lukewarm praise, they finished sooner than they thought they would. Soon enough, they walked back up to the counter, and Oogway had taken out a small purse to pay. Tigress had offered, but she was quickly turned down. "We'll have to come again sometime," Oogway said. The panda visibly deflated in relief. Tigress, for her part didn't correct him.

Po leaned over the counter, beaming at Tigress. "So does this mean you're gonna show me some Kung Fu?"

Tigress quickly opened her mouth to retort. "I never actually agreed to-"

"Why not?" Oogway supplied for her.

Tigress stared at him in betrayal, while Po started to do a little victory dance to himself. (Or maybe it was more of celebration, she couldn't really tell.) "What?" she said, trying to maintain some level of dignity. "You're actually going to teach him Kung Fu?"

" _I'm_ not," Oogway said, as if it was ridiculous. (Which, to Tigress, it _was_.) " _You_ are. Perhaps some Tai Chi to help him move around the kitchen with a little more grace," he suggested not unkindly.

Tigress looked from turtle to panda, and panda to turtle. Seeing she currently had no way out, Tigress sighed. "Fine," she said.

"Not in front of the shop," Mr. Ping said.

"C'mon, there's a loading space out back," Po said, bouncing on his feet.

As the panda practically dragged his student out back, Master Oogway allowed himself a slightly conspiratorial laugh. He looked back down at Mr. Ping. "My compliments to the chef. Both of them."

"Thank you," Mr. Ping said gratefully.

Master Oogway leaned in closer, smiling. "That's quite the secret ingredient you pack in there."

"You tell anyone, and I'll press charges." Mr. Ping responded dryly.

Oogway laughed. "I'd plead guilty."

Mr. Ping smiled up at this strange old turtle. "While we're talking, might I interest you in some bean buns?" He took out a few that he had prepared earlier.

Oogway took a sniff. "They smell like they're about to go bad."

"Exactly," Mr. Ping said. "I can offer a discount if you'd like."

* * *

Po lead her out back, and Tigress realized that she had been on this same street just yesterday. This was the same spot where she had picked up that weird list. Someone in this area had poisoned Shifu, and somebody had also likely made that list, only to throw it out. That was quite the coincidence. Or maybe. . . No, if she pursued this train of thought too far, she'd start to sound like Oogway.

"So what's Tai Chi?" Po asked.

"It's a martial art consisting of a series of stretches and exercises. It's just as much for meditation as it is for self-defense."

"So, is it _really_ Kung Fu?"

"Technically speaking, no. But it does provide a good basis for learning other martial arts. I guess if you want to be philosophical about it, it could be considered a part of Kung Fu."

"Meaning?"

"'Kung Fu' as a term, literally means 'excellence of self.' It means being disciplined inside and out. If part of having excellence of self means practicing Tai Chi, or making noodles that _won't_ make people turn green, then you could make the argument that it's a part of Kung Fu."

" _Hey_ ," Po said, slightly annoyed. "That was my first time. And you're not green right now are you? Although you're friend back there _did_ seem kinda green," he added thoughtfully. "I don't think my noodles had anything to do with that."

Tigress allowed herself a small chuff of amusement. "That was Master Oogway's normal shade of green, yes."

"Hey, should I be writing any of this down?"

Tigress shook her head and dropped into a stance. "Just try to follow my movements, for now."


	3. Time and Sand

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A record of Tigress’s next few trips to the shop.

After Po had finally found a stance where he wouldn't trip over his own feet, the two had started to fall into a rhythm. Po found that he could follow Tigress's movements well enough to keep up at the pace they were going.

"So," Po said, "what exactly did you think of the soup?"

"It was edible," Tigress said, shifting her paws.

Po followed, cringing. "That bad, huh?"

"What? I said it was edible. That means you did your job."

"Well, yeah," Po said, rolling his eyes, "but technically my _sandals_ are edible too. Doesn't mean I'd go out of my way to eat them. Eating something that's just 'edible' means you've ran out of options."

"That's quite the outlook to have."

Po laughed. "Try living with my dad sometime. Actually, no, don't try. The kitchen is crowded enough as is."

Tigress let out a slightly amused huff.

Po looked at the tiger, and smiled at the slight change in her demeanor. "So, are you willing to admit yet that this noodle shop is the best in the valley?" he asked, still following her katas.

"I had one bad experience and one neutral experience thanks to this establishment," Tigress said lightly. "You're going to have to provide better noodles if you want me to admit anything."

Po, on any other day would have been discouraged. Perhaps on some level he was, but something about the exercises, the way he felt his muscles tense and release, made him take the words differently. "Is that a _challenge_?" He said.

"Only if you can meet it," Tigress said.

"So I guess that means you'll be coming back sometime? Same deal then?" He said. He was starting to pant in exertion. Tigress took that as her cue to leave for the day.

"I suppose we'll find out the next time I run out of options," Tigress said, standing up.

Po shot up and gave a slightly muffled laugh. "Ooo-hoo-hoo, Okay. _Fine_. I see how it is," he said mock offense.

Oogway was waiting by the counter, playing checkers with Mr. Ping. By the time the two of them were done the sun still hung in the sky, but it was starting to burn orange in the west. Tigress was curt but not impolite in her goodbyes. Oogway gave a bow to Mr. Ping. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Ping."

"You too, Oogway," Mr. Ping said, returning the bow.

Po watched the two of them leave, feeling grateful to the both of them. As they left, he noted that the sunset did something interesting to Tigress's fur; the dying sunlight lit her pelt aflame. She looked like a spirit of autumn, all reds and golds.

"So?" Mr. Ping asked. "How did it go? Are they coming back?"

"I'm. . . not really sure. She was kinda vague on it."

Mr. Ping let out a frustrated sigh. "She'd better. This could be a very beneficial business relationship," he said as he started to cook the rest of the waiting orders. "The world runs on connections, Po, business and personal. Never forget that."

Po nodded, and started to observe his dad's cooking with a new intensity. After helping cook and serving tables, Mr. Ping noticed. Clearly, this Kung Shway or whatever it had been called would be a powerful motivator. Hopefully, Po would come to the point that good noodles were their own motivation. Until then, this could be a beneficial arrangement for the both of them.

* * *

Like most days, Master Oogway was looking at her in a way that, while fond, made her feel like she was locked out of the loop. More than that, she didn't like feeling like she was being examined. "What is it Master Oogway?" she eventually asked as they reached the palace steps.

"I take it that teaching the young panda went well?" He said. It was obvious in his tone that he already knew the answer.

She was tempted to lie, and say he was terrible purely to deny Oogway the satisfaction, but that would be disrespectful. "He isn't _entirely_ hopeless," she ended up saying. "I'll give him that much at least. How could you tell?"

Oogway looked on ahead. "A smile is sometimes more powerful than a punch."

Tigress halted as Oogway trudged on ahead. "I was smiling?" She wasn't entirely sure who she was asking.

Oogway stopped and turned around. "I hope you one day find yourself at the point where you notice a smile's absence more than a presence."

The two scaled the rest of the stairs in a silence that, while not quite awkward, still felt a little bit incomplete. Tigress almost didn't notice when they came to the top. Master Shifu was waiting for them, looking slightly displeased, which may not have been anything new. All the same, it made Tigress feel a bit more self conscious about how long she had been gone and what she did.

"Where have you two been?" Master Shifu demanded. "I've been looking everywhere for you!"

Tigress was about to answer when Master Oogway stepped in. "I merely asked Tigress to accompany me while I took a walk around the town. The sun had started to set before we knew it."

Master Shifu looked to Tigress. "Is this true?"

"Yes, Master." Tigress answered.

Master Shifu sighed before pointing at the two of them. "You will both exercise more caution in the future. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Master." Tigress said again.

Shifu let out an exhale through his nose. "Then. . . I suppose that will be all." With his piece said, he turned around and started to walk back into the palace grounds. Tigress stood at the entrance for a few moments, before she heard Master Oogway laugh to himself.

"The fun part of old age is that senility is expected," he said. He took out a small package of bean buns. "I got a good deal on these, but they seem to be too much for one person to eat. Perhaps you could help me?"

Tigress stared in disbelief for a moment before shaking her head, both to clear it and as a refusal. "Maybe Monkey would like to help," she suggested.

Oogway nodded good naturedly and started to walk. "Maybe I _will_ ask you to accompany me to the valley next time," he said.

Tigress surmised that that wouldn't be too bad.

* * *

It was two weeks later when she visited the noodle shop again.

True to Oogway's word, he did indeed ask Tigress to accompany him the next time. True to her word, Tigress was more mindful of the time. The entire trip had only taken around two hours; Half an hour to walk down to the shop, an hour to eat their order, and an extra half-an-hour to show Po what she had learned recently, or better his own Tai Chi when what she had learned was unsafe to practice in the area they used.

To her surprise, Po had taken the little, half-joking challenge she issued to heart.The noodle soup was actually better. Some little-seen playfulness in dictated her word choice. "Edible," she commented once again. Watching the panda fume to himself, she wondered if this was how Master Oogway usually felt. "But better," she added, as subdued as she could.

Po had soaked up her words like a sponge, whether it was for soup or martial arts.

It was another two weeks when she visited the shop for a third time. This time, she was the one who had asked Oogway to come with her.

She had given her usual dull praise that was really more a statement of fact, and had once again greatly enjoyed Po's very vocal frustration. This time, however, Po had issued a challenge of his own. "You think you could do better?" Po asked.

Tigress gave a dismissive glance. "If you can do it, how hard can it be?"

Po winced, which sent a little dagger of guilt into Tigress heart. The dagger was quickly replaced with worry however, as Po's face contorted into a close-mouthed smile. Tigress had recognized the same smile when Monkey had unleashed one of his more evil pranks around the Jade Palace. Po was getting an idea; an awful idea, a wonderful idea, a wonderful, awful idea. "Alright then," Po said. "The next time you have the time, come here so we can see if you can cook something better than 'edible.'"

Tigress smirked. "You're on," she said, trying her best to ignore Oogway trying (and failing) to contain a laugh.

She was able to make time that very night, and had visited after the shop closed. The Ping family had welcomed her warmly, and showed her what cooking noodle soup was supposed to look like, by way of demonstrations from Mr. Ping and Po both.

Full of confidence, Tigress got to work.

That confidence crashed down once she saw what she had managed to. . . well she wasn't even sure cook was the right word.

"It's . . . not supposed to do that, right?" she asked hesitantly.

"It's _soup_ ," Po said, beyond all disbelief. "How do you manage to set fire to _soup_?"

Mr. Ping looked like he was having a heart attack. "This is a crime against the culinary arts, and should never see the light of day."

"Agreed," both Po and Tigress said at the same time.

Tigress' next trip to the noodle shop was made by herself. She had asked Oogway, but to her surprise, Oogway had refused, saying he needed to meditate.

"But. . . why?" she asked. Tigress severely doubted that meditation was the only reason.

Oogway started to climb up his staff, and smiled as he fit his head onto the crook of the wood. "A child will never run if they have to hold someone's hand to walk."

His absence and his words both affected Tigress greatly, but she went anyways.

Tigress' trips down to Ping Dynasty Noodle House became a more regular occurrence, though none of the involved parties could exactly identify when it happened.The changes around the Jade Palace were subtle at first. The steady supply of bean buns were the most obvious.

Gradually, Tigress had started to smile a bit more. She was a bit slower to stop the more mild antics that they unleashed upon the palace. Every once in a while, she would even exchange banter. It was a subdued, quiet addition to the five's antics, much like Tigress herself, but the fact that it existed could not be denied.

Master Oogway had taken to challenging anyone who would take him up on a game of checkers. Nobody really questioned where this new dedication came from. As Oogway had said, senility was expected after roughly five-hundred years.

Shifu became Oogway's most common opponent, though Monkey would occasionally drop by for a game (and hide the pieces when Oogway wasn't looking) and on greater occaisions, Crane.

It was over one of these games that Oogway and Shifu had started to talk about Tigress. "She's become more dedicated as of late," Shifu said quietly. It was unclear if he meant to say it aloud. There was something meditative about his tone.

"Has she ever been anything but?" Oogway asked gently, moving one of his own pieces.

Shifu shook his head, before making his own move. "No. But as of late she's been more. . . focused."

Oogway nodded. "Focus. That's one word for it."

". . . Maybe the wrong word for it, you suppose?" Shifu asked leadingly.

Oogway chuckled. "She is your student. You tell me."

Shifu hummed. "No, not focused exactly. She's always had focus. she's more. . . balanced now."

Oogway smiled. "A little bit of company goes a long way in improving a person."

"Company is another word for it," Shifu said, echoing Oogway.

"The wrong word you suppose?" Oogway said.

"Perhaps the other students having the other students around has been good for her. They're starting to become comrades."

Oogway had a stronger word for what the five's relationships with another were developing into, but he saved his opinion. It had, after all, been so long since his friend's lips had tilted up like that, even if it was a ghost of the times he smiled more. Oogway's opinions could wait until Shifu himself had regained his balance. Now this game of checkers however, that was one thing that could not wait.


	4. Snowfall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The winter marks a few changes that are starting to develop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “Donovan, I’m going to have to call you back: I’m having a stroke.” -Me, reading all of these lovely comments.

It was nearing the dead of winter when Tigress had made one of her trips to the shop, and like usual, Po and her had headed out back to practice. The Tai Chi that she had originally set out to teach had bled more into actual Kung Fu. The tiger style was proving surprisingly compatible with Po's physique. Of course, he was nowhere near flexible enough to do something like a split-kick. When Po had suggested it, she had immediately shot the idea down.

A few of the non-splitting kicks had left him unbalanced. After watching him fall onto his large backside had stopped being funny and starting being distracting, she told him to show her what he was doing. She spotted the problem immediately. "You need to shift your hips," she said. Without thinking she put her paws on his waist and shifted them manually.

"Whoa-whoa-whoa,' Po said confusedly. His face was starting to burn, and he desperately hoped his fur was thick enough to hide the color.

Unfortunately, Tigress noticed. She quirked an eyebrow at him. "Not good with physical contact?"

Po shook his head, a grin beginning to form. "Nah, I've got not problem being physical. Usually it's the other way around. This is a nice change of pace."

"Don't get used to it," Tigress said flatly. She stepped back, leaving Po to balance on the foot that was currently planted in the ground. "Try it now."

Po extended his leg in a kick, feeling the difference in power. "Oh-ho-ho-ho-ho, yeah. That's more like it." He tried a few more kicks, stepping forward with each.

"Remember; keep your stance. That's where your strength comes from."

The next kick, Po did just that. Unfortunately, Tigress had neglected to teach Po how to aim. The kick went directly towards a stack of boxes, sending them a couple of feet outwards and toppling over.

Still in position, Po's eyes went wide as his mouth shut itself, while Tigress's paw hit her forehead. Po's leg fell back down as he looked back at Tigress with a nervous smile. "Ehehe. . . whoops."

Tigress sighed. "Just help me pick these back up."

The two set to work cleaning up after the mess, with Po inspecting the vegetables for any that were unsalvageable. "Dad's gonna have to wash these before we use them."

"Yes, it would be a shame if anyone _else_ got food poisoning from your cooking."

" _One time,_ Tigress. _One time._ "

Mr. Ping shot out of the shop. "I heard a crash, what's going on? How's my produce?"

"Hey, Dad," Po said, trying to block the disorganized crates with his body.

"What's behind your back?" Mr. Ping asked, already suspecting the answer.

"What? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Why-why would you think something's behind my back?"

Mr. Ping stared levelly. Po's smile wasn't getting any more convincing. A few moments of silence passed between them before Po sighed in defeat. "Alright fine. Tigress and I were practicing a bit of Kung Fu and I may have. . . maybe. . . sort of. . . pushed the veggies away a bit. . . forcefully."

Mr. Ping honked in surprise. "My cabbages!" Quickly, he waddled past the panda and inspected the crates. 

"I already threw out the nastier ones," Po said. "But we're gonna have to soak the rest before we use them."

Mr. Ping picked up one of the crates. "Hmmph. Clearly we're going to have to find a bigger area for you two to practice."

Po picked up a few boxes himself, with Tigress soon following his example. "Wait, so you're not mad," Po asked, heading into the shop.

"Oh no, I'm positively livid, but right now we have customers to serve."

Po winced, but followed anyways. As he set down his boxes and started to rinse off a few onions, he talked to Tigress. "So, you think maybe I could come up to the Jade Palace for practice?"

Tigress shook her head. "Sorry, but only formal students, masters, and the keepers are allowed inside. Besides, even if you were allowed, you'd have to scale a thousand steps of stairs."

Po grimaced. "Ew." He looked thoughtful for a moment. "You know what? Still would be worth it."

Tigress looked at Po in surprise. He had already well established his hatred of stairs, so either, he was exaggerating when he said that they gave him asthma (which wouldn't entirely be out of character, given what she knew of him), or Kung Fu had a bigger impact on his life than she expected. "Speaking of, the others will be expecting me back soon."

Po turned to his father. "Oh, hey Dad, mind if I walk with her a bit? Just until we get to the-" he paused to shiver a bit, "-stairs."

Mr. Ping looked back. "I thought Tigress needed to get back _soon_."

"Are you trying to say I'm slow?" Po asked. "Didn't we win that three-legged race back when I was, like, eight?"

"I need you here," Mr. Ping explained, washing a few cabbages. 

"The lunch rush is over, and the dinner rush won't be here for another few hours," Po said. "We have time."

Mr. Ping sighed. "Alright. But come back as soon as you can."

"Thanks Dad!" Po said, excitedly. he bounced his way out of the door with enthusiastic exclamations.

Tigress stood still for a minute. "Does he realize that walking with me involves _actually_ walking with me?"

Mr. Ping smiled. "Give it a minute."

They waited in silence for a few moments before Po came back. "Sorry, I thought you were following me," he said. 

Tigress shook her head, not frowning, and started to head out. "Do you even know the way to the Jade Palace?"

"Well of course I do," Po said, following. "It's. . . it's. . . Okay so I know it's on top of the mountain, but I don't really know where the stairs up there start."

"Maybe you should follow me," Tigress suggested amusedly. The two settled into a pleasant stroll. Neither had to try too hard to slow down or speed up. It was almost easy to ignore Po. Almost. Every time he passed something of mild interest, he would point it out to her.

It was interesting to see what he would point out, even if the shops themselves weren't all that interesting to her. Most of them were things that sold hobby supplies, such as a woodcarver's stall, or an ink-man's loft. Tigress realized that watching the route and the stops Po would make were almost a study in Po himself.

"Po, if you make any more suggestions for the next time I come down to the valley, you're going to have to write them down."

"So does that mean you'd actually come with me?"

"Perhaps," Tigress answered.

"I'm not hearing a no. . ." Po said leadingly.

Tigress shook her head in reply. "How do you even find time to pursue all of these things? You have your cooking, and I can tell that you practice Kung Fu even when I'm not teaching you."

"Well, you only really come down every other week, and people don't _all_ eat _all_ the time. So yeah, time isn't really an issue."

Tigress put her paw to her chin. "Perhaps time isn't quite right. . . How do you pursue them _all at once?_ How are you a student of Kung Fu, a cook, a woodcarver, _and_ an artist?"

Po scratched his own chin. "I dunno. The cooking thing is just something I kind of _have_ to be good at. I _like_ being able to cook things that taste good, but I don't really think of it as something I really pursue. Like, I like cooking, but I _love_ Kung Fu."

"Interesting." Tigress said. And it was. "And the other things?"

"Eh. They're more like _hobbies_ , I guess. I don't really think of them as anything I'd make a life out of. Like, I want to get good at woodcarving, but I don't want to make carvings for a living. I just want to do it because it's fun."

"You spend your money on things that you do just because you want to?" Tigress said. "There's no investment, or return?"

"I have fun doing those things. _That's_ the return. I make carvings because I want to. Simple as that."

"That's all?"

"Sometimes that's the only reason you need," Po said, smiling. "I mean why else would you keep coming back for soup that's just ' _edible_.' Why else would you let me annoy you all the way to the palace steps?"

Tigress shook her head again, this time with a smile and small huff. The two were silent for a few moments. As Po's words sunk in, Tigress realized just how true they were. She no longer thought of her visits to the noodle shop as an exchange. It still remained something that she felt she had to do, but somewhere, somehow, the motive had changed.

Suddenly feeling more conscious of herself, Tigress was relieved when they finally reached the palace steps. She spared a glance at Po, and had to stifle a laugh when she saw his jaw hanging open in disbelief.

"You really weren't joking about how many stairs there were."

"Po, it's on top of a mountain. How did you _think_ I get up there?"

"I don't know. I remember hearing about this type of thing where there's a like, platform thingie with a rope attached, and somebody pulls it up. I was hoping there would be at least one of those."

Tigress smiled. "Still think it would be worth it?"

Po gulped. But his gaze held up. ". . . Y'know what? Yeah. Still worth it." The words sounded flimsy and weak, but his eyes held a steel that Tigress had never seen before.

She spared him a final glance. "I'll be back soon enough," she said.

Po smiled as he watched Tigress walk up the first flights. Suddenly, a thought struck him. "Hey, one last thing!" he called. He saw Tigress stop and turn around. He put his paws to his mouth. "Dongzhi Festival's coming up! My dad wants me to help him cook for his guests! We've got a little show as tradition! This'll be my first time cooking at it! Will I see you there?!"

Tigress thought a moment, before calling back. "I'm not sure. Maybe."

"I'm not hearing a no," Po called, again with cupped paws to project his voice.

Tigress shook her head. Without letting herself think too hard, she mimicked Po's attempt to be louder. "There's a dinner between the masters! I'll see what I can do!"

"No pressure!" Po said.

Tigress resumed walking up the palace steps. With every step away from the valley, her thoughts grew heavier, as reality sunk in. The masters' dinner may or may not have been technically her responsibility, (at least not yet, not until she became a master herself,) but just skipping out on such a formal event without a good enough reason to go to a local dinner-and-show would reflect poorly on her. More importantly, it would reflect badly on Shifu.

The last few steps, she took a few deeper, calming breaths. If she couldn't make it, Po wouldn't judge her. If she asked Master Oogway, she had no reason to think he would stop her. (If anything, she had every reason to think he would do the opposite.) Bringing it up with Master Shifu, however, would be an uncomfortable conversation at best.

She would deal with it, she decided. Just then, her face was hit by something cold and flakey. As she heard Monkey trying to contain his laugh, she took one more deep breath. Monkey's laughter died as she slowly and with precision wiped the snow from her face.

Finally opening her eyes, she stared down Monkey, who covered his mouth. Monkey quickly pointed at Mantis. "He did it!"

" _What_?!" Mantis asked incredulously. " _You're the only one here with thumbs!_ "

"Monkey," Tigress said seriously. "I want you to consider your choices _very_ carefully." It was with immense satisfaction that she watched Monkey gulp. "Do you really want to get into a snowball fight with the strongest student here?"

Monkey gave a nervous chuckle, before darting away. "You'll have to catch me first!"

Tigress grinned predatorially. Monkey was _so_ dead when she got her paws on him.


	5. Dominoes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tigress explores the palace as one thing leads to another. After all it’s simple: asking Master Shifu a question.

Monkey had been unsuccessful in his attempts to escape Tigress's wrath. His screams could be heard from the Hall of Warriors down to the base of the palace steps.

After thoroughly thrashing Monkey, Tigress decided that she would check on the other residents of the Jade Palace. Mantis, she had already seen at the entrance. Clearly, Monkey and he had been planning something. Monkey may have been put out of commission for now, but once he got over the trauma she inflicted upon him, she had no doubt he would be back to his usual antics. She would have to keep an eye open for the both of them.

The first place that she checked was the training hall, which had been getting progressively more and more intense with its implements. Clearly, becoming a master was something that required more than simple strength and dedication. As she opened the doors, a stray thought struck her. Even at it's current level, it could be very dangerous for a beginner like Po. She winced as she thought about the harm he could do to himself with his own clumsiness. Maybe a railing would be a good addition. It certainly wouldn't be more extravagant than the giant bronze bowl that Master Shifu had just had commissioned.

She spotted Viper curled up on the part of the floor that shot fire at random intervals. Yep, a railing would definitely make a good addition. Viper opened one eye before uncoiling part of herself to look up and wave her tail in greeting. "Hi Tigress!" she called.

"Good afternoon," Tigress said back. "Are you sure it's a good idea to be sleeping there?"

"Oh don't worry, it's not turned on right now. Besides, I like the warmth. Snakes aren't really made for winter, you know."

Tigress let herself smile for a bit. "Do you know where the others are?"

Viper put her tail to her chin. "Well, I heard Monkey scream his soul out earlier. I assume that was _your_ doing."

Tigress flashed a grin in pride. "It was."

Viper gave a small chuckle. "Then there's Mantis. He said he saw some charts for pressure points in town the other day. He's probably down there right now."

"I passed him at the entrance," Tigress said, before rolling her eyes. "Tell me, has acupuncture ever actually _worked_?"

"Well not whenever _he's_ tried it," Viper said. "But he's not giving up until it's worked one time." It went unsaid between the two of them that Mantis would lord it over the rest of them forever once it actually worked.

"And Crane?"

Viper smiled. "He's writing a letter to his girlfriend."

The made Tigress pull up short. ". . . Crane has a girlfriend?" Odd, he never mentioned one before.

Viper rolled her eyes. "Well not if you ask him, no. But I got him talking about what he did before all this Kung Fu stuff. Then he started talking about this leopard girl he knew and just _would not stop_. He writes letters to her on the weekly. 'Mei Ling' I think he said her name was." Viper coiled back up, seemingly reveling in victory. "She writes him back, too. Yeah, there's definitely _something_ going on between those two."

Tigress started to head out. "I'll leave you to your rest."

Tigress wandered around the palace, a bit aimless. She passed by the students' rooms, including her own. She paused for a breath, before she started to grow curious. Crane had his door shut, and she could see his shadow practicing calligraphy. The others however, had left their doors open.

One by one, she took quick glances into their rooms. Viper's was unusually tidy compared to the other times she had seen it. Most of the time, Viper's room had been at least somewhat messy; never disorganized, but lived in. Tigress supposed the lack of mess meant that she was spending more time in the training hall. In Viper's room was her bedroll, as well as a sketch that she had brought from her village of herself and her father.

Mantis's room was organized as well, but never altogether too well. There was a small bookshelf which held a number of scrolls, most of them for acupuncture. Tigress shivered at the prospect of Mantis trying more of his experiments. In the weeks, now moths since he had arrived, she had only let him try it on her once. _Never again._

Monkey's room was, in Tigress's opinion, a self-contained whirlwind. A hammock hung from the rafters, a collection of banana peels strewn loosely in the corner. Truth be told, Tigress had almost started to regret what she had subjected Monkey to, but after seeing his room, Tigress decided that such refusal to clean up after himself demanded such a punishment.

Tigress knew what would await her in her own room, but was too immersed in her impromptu study for the thought to sink in. It was a stark contrast to the other's barracks, one that left her stunned. The others had been uniform to some extent, (they were barracks, after all,) but they were all filled with at least one or two touches. These strangers that were no longer strangers had filled their little allotment in the palace with things that made them happy; things that felt like home.

Tigress's room was empty.

After a few moments, Tigress came to the decision that it would not stay empty. The next time she visited the valley, she would find something. not anything big or drastic, but something that would make her room feel less empty; perhaps a set of dominoes.

Thinking about the valley, reminded her of Po, which in turn reminded her of the winter festival and her promise.

She sighed, leaving the barracks. The sooner she got this over with the better. She decided to ask Master Oogway first. She could use the advice.

Master Oogway was in the Hall of Warriors, meditating on his staff. The winter chill had forced him indoors more often and more frequently as the years went by. The candles were lit all around the pond.

Tigress hesitated for a moment, unsure of whether or not she should disturb his meditation. He always looked so peaceful. It would be selfish to trouble him with her worries. She should just sneak out before he realized that she was there.

The choice was soon made for her, however, as Oogway slipped from her view. "Wha-" she barely got out before he called behind her.

"Is there something that troubles you, Tigress?"

The startled yelp she gave made her very glad that Oogway was the only one else in the Hall of Warriors. (Unless one counted the Urn of Whispering Warriors, in which case the souls of the entire Tenshu Army had heard her.) "Master Oogway, I. . ." she stopped herself to take a deep breath and get her heartbeat under control. "I was wondering if I could have your permission to go down to the valley at the Dongzhi festival."

Master Oogway smiled at her. "You most certainly could," he said leaning in. 'But I'm afraid that won't do you much good."

"What?"

Master Oogway shook his head slowly. 'As far as tradition is concerned, Shifu is your master, not me. If you want to visit your friend, Shifu is who you need to ask."

Tigress sighed. "I was afraid you'd say that."

Oogway looked at her inquiringly. "And why is that?" he said gently. He started to walk back to the pond. "You don't need to answer. Just know that wanting things is not a sin, just a mark of being a person."

Tigress looked back at the turtle. "You. . . don't think I'm being selfish?"

Oogway smiled. "No. Do you?"

Tigress opened her mouth to answer, but found that she had none. She offered a bow to Master Oogway and turned to exit.

"Don't forget to close the doors on your way out," Master Oogway called. As Tigress did just that, he reflected. This would be a test for both of his students; one he hoped that they both passed. He passed into that gray area between meditation and sleep, and briefly wondered if he was getting tired because he was getting old, or if he was getting old because he was getting tired.

Tigress found Master Shifu in the garden. He sat cross-legged, playing his flute. Tigress sat down under one of the rafters and waited. The music lifted part of her anxieties, until she thought too hard about what would happen when Shifu finished playing.

The music was beautiful and soothing, but there was something else too it as well. There was something. . . mournful in the melody. To Tigress, she could almost make out the sounds of her life's story. She wondered if Shifu could hear the longing in the song as well.

The sounds of the flute faded. As Tigress opened her eyes, she saw that Shifu had not moved from his position. His ears were perked up, however.

"Can I help you?" Master Shifu said.

Tigress stood and bowed. She knew he couldn't see it, but he could probably hear it. "Master, I. . . I wanted to ask you something."

Master Shifu sat in silence, clearly waiting for her to continue.

"I was wondering if you wouldbe so kind as to. . ." Tigress breathed in deeply, "as to grant me your permission to be down at the Valley of Peace for the Dongzhi festival."

Shifu remained silent for a few horrible, nauseating moments. Tigress knew better than to assume that she was getting sick. Finally, he spoke. "You've never asked this before," he said without anger or shock, or really any emotion at all. That was almost worse.

"I know, Master," she said, knowing that he would continue.

"Why now?"

"I made a promise," Tigress said honestly. "To a friend. I promised him I would at least see if I could make it."

Master Shifu hummed to himself. "This friend of yours; who is he?"

"A noodle-maker's son," Tigress said. A thousand adjectives came to her mind, but she settled on the two she thought would be best suited for this conversation, "Humble and kind."

"And this chef's son," Shifu said, "You believe him to be worthy of your time?"

Tigress opened her eyes, looking at her paws, still bowing and still making the sign of respect for her master. "Yes, Master Shifu," she said to the both of them. "I do."

Master Shifu sat in silence for a few more moments. Finally, he breathed deeply in, and gave a sigh. "Alright. You have my permission."

Tigress felt her face lift on its own accord. "Thank you, master!" Feeling victorious, she turned and walked away, eyes bright and chest held high.

Master Shifu heard the joy in her voice, in the way she walked away. "Tigress," he called after a moment. He heard her stop. "Consider the path you follow very carefully. You can never wipe away your pawprints."

"Yes, master." Tigress bowed one final time before she slipped away.

He waited for a few moments, waiting for something to make sense in his mind. Nothing left to do, he resumed playing his flute. Like Tigress, he too could hear the mourning in it; he could hear his life's story. He could hear himself mourning the days when the ways of the Jade Palace and the teachings of excellence of self were enough for his cubs.


	6. Tang Yuan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Winter Festival arrives, in all of its hectic glory.

Po was pretty sure that they could see the dampness on his fur. It was the middle of winter; how was he sweating so much in the dead of winter? How was it a hundred degrees if it was snowing? His thoughts tumbled around in his head like his brain was a frying pan that needed to be flipped. Was there a frying pan that needed to be flipped? He didn't know. Or maybe he did know, but forgot that he knew. Or maybe he forgot that he didn't know. 

What he needed right now was something to focus on, something to ground himself. Maybe he should just. . . help himself to a little snack; as a reward for being good. They did have some extra bean buns in stock. Besides, it's not like they were exactly hot sellers.

"Po!" his dad called. "Are you ready?!"

There went that idea. If he started snacking now, he wouldn't be able to stop until his dad found him, and he'd rather not have to go through the whole deal again. Not when their dinner and show was about to start. Besides, eating tangyuan was part of the celebration. If he still felt hungry after serving everybody, then he could help himself. "Uh. . . Yeah!" he called back. "Totally ready!" He did not feel ready, but right then he wasn't exactly too keen on his dad knowing that.

He made his way downstairs, tripping on the fifth step down and tumbling the rest of the way. Mr. Ping winced at the noise but didn't stop cutting his celery. "Are you alright?" he called.

Po quickly pushed himself back up. "Yeah, yeah, of course." He pulled on his apron and took up his position by his dad's side. He tried to offer what he thought was a reassuring smile.

Mr. Ping saw the way his mouth stretched, and shot one of his famous 'something's not quite right' looks. "Are you nervous?"

"What? Me? Nervous?' Po said, trying to choke out a laugh. "C'mon. Me? _Nah_. Pffft. Of course not. I've _totally_ got this."

"Totally," Mr Ping repeated, not believing his son in the slightest.

"Of course I'm not nervous. Why. . . why would I be nervous? Why would you think that? _I'm_ not nervous; _you're_ nervous."

Mr. Ping set down his chopping block to look his son squarely in the eye. "Po," he said simply.

Po offered a small, obviously uncomfortable laugh. It only lasted a few moments before his jaw set itself in a grimace. "Okay. . . okay, yeah, I'm nervous." Po admitted stiffly. " _I've never been more stressed out in my entire life!"_ Po wheezed. "Am I gonna throw up? I might need to throw up."

"Good," Mr. Ping said.

" _What?!_ "

"Being nervous means you're taking this seriously," Mr. Ping said. "Now that I know that you can take this seriously, I need you to take this not _too_ seriously."

Po put his head in his paws and exhaled deeply. "Yeah, thanks, Dad. That really helps," he said, not feeling helped at all. "Why did you have to do this on my _first_ year as a co-chef? I mean why not wait until next year, when I'm more confident."

"Would a year's worth of experience really make that much of a difference?" Mr. Ping asked lightly.

"I don't know," Po said exasperatedly. "I guess we won't really know until next year!"

"Exactly!" Mr. Ping responded.

"Wh-huh?"

Mr. Ping smiled up at his son. "Remember what I said when Tigress first visited the shop?"

"'Why did you give her a coupon for Secret Ingredient Soup?'" Po said.

"No. I said that you will never become a proper chef until you can learn to stop being afraid."

"Well, yeah, you did, but how do I stop?" Po asked. He lifted his arms up slightly. "I mean _look_ at this. There are _actual stains_ from how hard I've been sweating all night. I don't even know how I _did_ that, how do you expect me to _stop_ doing that?"

"You _try_ ," Mr. Ping said. "You do whatever it is that you can't do, and suddenly you _can_ do it. how do you think I got to be such a good parent?" Mr. Ping asked jokingly.

That did make Po laugh a little. "Okay. . . So, like, do you have any advice to make it a little less scary the first time around?"

Mr. Ping swept his wings out in front of him. "' _Everything is part of the show.'_ That's what I told myself the first time I did this. 'Everything is part of the show; mistakes and all.' And that was before I had my son to help me." 

Po laughed a little more, shoulders not quite so tense.

Mr. Ping looked back up to Po. "So? Are we ready to serve these people some soup tonight?"

"No," Po said, honest, but smiling. "But since they came, we might as well give them what we can, right?"

* * *

The show of cooking lasted for hours. Every time one person or family would leave, another would show up, leaving them with only a few moments between shows. The way the two of them wove around the shop, tossing produce and utensils to each other, suddenly made Po very glad that he was practicing his kung Fu. (Not that _wasn't_ glad on most days, but that day he was just _extra_ glad. He would not want to have been thrown into this much physical activity without being prepared.)

The two of them only crashed into each other once. Thankfully, it was when neither of them were holding anything especially sharp or hot. After Po recovered from tripping over his dad, he looked sheepishly to his audience. "Um . . . that was part of the show," he offered. On any other day, hearing them laugh at that would have sent him retreating back up into his room, but right then, he had a job to do, so he stayed down.

The rest of the performance stayed pretty much the same after that, so he could almost convince himself that they didn't hold it against him. That little voice in the back of his head would take a while to forget it, but it eventually did.

At the end of the night, however, it found something else to nag at him about. This one was far harder to ignore. He stood waiting for a few moments, looking out at the crowds that were starting to thin out. "She didn't come," he said to himself.

Po felt a comforting wing by his side. "She did say that she might not be able make it," Mr. Ping said gently. "Besides, the winter festival is made for family. Maybe she's spending time with hers."

Po nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, that makes sense." It was disappointing to know that Tigress couldn't make it, but it would be very 'Excellence of Self'-y to be bitter about it. Tigress's visit would be more for his benefit than hers, anyways. He couldn't expect her to drop everything just to make him feel a little bit better; that would be selfish.

He turned around and was about to head in when he heard some footsteps. Confirming he wasn't crazy, he turned around, bursting into a smile at the sight that awaited him. "Tigress!"

Tigress offered a smile. "Sorry I'm late. I don't really have much experience navigating crowds."

"I'm just glad that you're here," Po responded.

Tigress looked at the empty tables. "It's over, right? Did it go well?"

"'Did it go well'?" Po repeated. He swung his arms up. "It went _awesome_!"

Tigress smirked into her paw. "Did it really now?"

"What, you calling me a liar?" Po said jokingly.

Tigress tossed her head to the side. "Let's just say you've been known to exaggerate."

Po laughed good-naturedly. "Well, we can't let this slander stand, can we?" Po asked his father.

Mr. Ping smiled. "We were just about to make something for ourselves,' he said to Tigress. "I suppose we can make it our last show for the night. Provided you can pay, of course."

" _Dad_ ," Po said exasperatedly.

"What? Friends are nice and everything, but we _do_ run a business."

Tigress took her seat near the front. "It's alright. I don't mind."

Watching the two move around the kitchen, Tigress was quite certain that this was worth her time. In fact, she wouldn't really say that she _spent_ her time, because that would imply that something was lost. The truth was that something was found here. It came in the form of art and dance as the Ping family cooked.

It was with a special kind of happiness that she enjoyed her noodles with the duo. As the meal neared it's end, she noticed a dessert that made her pause. "Tangyuan?" she asked. "Isn't this meant to be shared with family members?"

Po stopped in the middle of lifting his own serving to his face. "Oh. Yeah. We just caught up in making a dinner for three, it completely slipped my mind. We can make more if you want to take some back to the Jade Palace," Po offered. After a moment he added, "Or you could. . . maybe think of it as being a part of our family for the night?"

Tigress laughed to herself a bit. After giving it a moment of thought, she smiled back at Po. "Would both work?"

Po grinned. "Yeah. Yeah, both is great."


	7. Rise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Po faces off against his greatest adversary.

Po was nearly heaving besides her as Tigress walked back up the palace steps.

She had spent the night at the Ping residence, as they had a few extra rooms that they rented out during the holiday. She had paid for her room, despite Po's objections. Mr. Ping had tried to lecture his son about not letting personal life interfere with running a business, and she had rather wanted to avoid causing conflict between father and son.

As compensation, Po had insisted that he at least help carry her tang yuan to the Jade Palace. Tigress had no reason to doubt Po's motives; in the time since she knew him he had never been anything less than honest and a people-pleaser. Secretly, however, Tigress suspected that part of his reasons for wanting to help included getting a glimpse at the Jade Palace.

If that _was_ Po's plan, then it was clearly falling apart. "You _really_ weren't joking about not liking stairs, were you?"

Po gave her a smile. Or at least half of one. "'Course I wasn't. I wasn't joking about it being worth it, either."

Tigress smirked and crossed her arms as Po bent over to catch his breath. "Worth it to help out a friend? Or to see the Jade Palace?" Earlier that day, Tigress had questioned his commitment to carry dessert up an entire mountain just because she had to pay for a room, he gave a similar response.

"Both," Po said. He put his hand to his mouth as he nearly threw up, but was luckily able to swallow.

"Po, you know that you don't _have_ to help me with this," Tigress offered. "Only students, masters, and the people who work there are allowed inside, anyways."

Po shook his head. "That's why I want to do it."

"Because you don't have to, or because you're not allowed inside?"

"Both. But mostly the first," Po said. "I mean, yeah, I would love to see the Jade Palace. Even just looking at it up close would be _awesome_. But also because you don't think I have to." Po gave her a smile. "That's one of the things I like about you; expecting things from me and being my friend are never the same thing."

Tigress gave a small smile, before it was dragged down by concern. "Could you. . . elaborate on that?"

Po gave a scoff to himself. "It's nothing much really. My dad expects me to run the noodle shop for him when he retires. It's a part of being his son."

"And this. . . troubles you?"

"Pfffft, nah," Po said. It was hard to take him at face value when he was panting with every step. After a few moments of Tigress's raised eyebrow, he caved. "Okay, yeah, a little. I like cooking, but I love Kung Fu. Like, if I had any other job, I wouldn't mind cooking for people, but if it's all I'm doing all day, then I don't think I could really enjoy it, you know?"

Tigress nodded. She had never really experienced burnout herself, but she had felt pangs of monotony recently. (Which reminded her about her need to buy a set of dominoes.) "And Kung Fu?"

"Kung Fu I couldn't do all day either, but, like, for a completely different reason. Cooking isn't really tiring to my body, but it makes _me_ tired. Kung Fu is tiring to my muscles and everything, but it makes me a good tired. Like, I can't do Kung Fu all day because I literally _can't_. I would if I could, but I can't. But after cooking for more than a few hours at a time, I just want people to finish up eating so that they can go back to work, or back home, or literally anywhere else as long as it's _over_."

Tigress eyed him from the side as she smiled. "I don't know, that show last night seemed pretty tiring."

"Winter holiday excepted," Po amended.

"Have you ever thought about talking with your father about it?" Tigress said gently.

"Oh sure. I've thought about it plenty. But if you're asking me if I've actually talked to him about it. . . eh-hehe, no. No, I have not."

"Why not?" Tigress said without accusation.

Po shrugged, still holding the containers. "I just don't really want to get into it," he said just a tad defensively. "Like, there's this _thing_ that he does whenever he sees me doing well. I've seen my dad get grumpy, but I've never seen him discontent. But when he sees me make a bowl of noodles that he doesn't have to fix, or stir up, or add the secret ingredient to, he looks. . . well he looks like he's just been named the new Emperor of China. Like the entire world is just that kitchen, and everything about it just got better. I don't want to take that away from him."

Tigress hummed in acknowledgement.

"Honestly, part of me is flattered that he thinks that I could do what he does."

"Your father has high expectations for you," Tigress said reassuringly. "I guess Master Shifu is similar in that regard," she hadn't realized she said that last part out loud until Po responded.

"Is he really?"

Tigress hadn't meant to start a discussion, but now that she knew that she held Po's attention, she felt that she owed it to him somehow to continue. She nodded. "Master Shifu expects nothing but our best. Sometimes, it can get tiring when he corrects my form, or offers his thoughts on something I'm doing wrong, but. . . maybe that's just his way of saying he's proud of me." The words, 'I hope' almost forced themselves out of her mouth, but she held them back.

Just a few minutes longer, (minutes that felt short to Tigress but probably felt like forever to Po,) the two of them arrived up on top of the palace steps. "We're here," she called to Po. She smoothly lifted the containers from his arms as he collapsed at the top step. She backed up as he rolled himself onto his back.

"Yeah!" Po said. he punched the air from his position. "Yeah-ha-ha-ha-ha! Take _that_ , stairs."

Tigress squatted down towards him. "I'm going to take these inside. You should probably rest here for a bit before heading back down."

Po gave her a thumbs up.

She stood back up to her full height. "You might want to keep our conversation in mind." Tigress turned and started to head into the Jade Palace.

"Yeah. Maybe you should too," Po called back.

Tigress paused. ". . . Perhaps," she said.

Po grinned, still on the floor. "I'm not hearing a ' _no_.'"

Tigress huffed, smiling. She turned around slightly. "Do you want me to _kick_ you down those stairs?"

Po laughed. "I mean, hey, it'd still be better than walking."

Tigress shook her head, giving a small laugh. "Don't be too sure," she said, finally passing through the doors to the Jade Palace.

As Po heard the gates close, he picked himself up off of the ground. "The Jade Palace," he said to himself, drinking in what he could see above the walls. "Yeah. Totally worth it."


	8. Family

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter will be taking some ideas from both Secrets of the Furious Five, and Legends of Awesomeness. I know LoA is pretty polarizing, but I promise I’ll try to keep this as in-character as possible.

Shifu and Oogway were involved in yet another game of checkers. Shifu was starting to get good. In just a few more weeks, he might almost be as good as Mr. Ping.

The quiet knocking and clacking of wooden pieces on a wood board set a tempo of calm contemplation. Oogway studied the board. Oogway studied Shifu. Moving one of his pieces, Oogway opened his mouth. "Something is troubling you, old friend."

Shifu hummed, not an answer, but an acknowledgement. He made his move.

Oogway said no more, simply returning to the board. A few movements of stillness, and then the knocking of wood on wood resounded again. The two passed minutes in the making of their wood chalk music.

"Tigress." Shifu said at last.

Oogway nodded. Another clack on the board. Shifu was starting to lose the game.

"I fear she may be losing her self-control." 

A few more turns and Shifu would lose, unless his strategy included a hidden turnaround. "Is she now?" Oogway asked.

Shifu made his move in response, seeming to gain the upper hand. "I've never known her to be anything but disciplined and studious. But rather than spend this solstice in one of the most important traditions for a Kung Fu master, she spends it slumming it up in the valley with some random noodle-maker's son."

"The master's dinner _is_ between masters, after all," Oogway offered, plucking one of his pieces and setting a few paces ahead. "Impressive student, she may be, but a student she is." He leaned forward as Shifu studied the board. "If it truly bothers you, you could have said no."

Master Shifu shook his head. "True, but one day, the title and responsibilities of a master will be hers. I'd have," Shifu paused to let out a sigh, still holding onto the piece he intended to move. "I'd have thought she would be eager to learn what that entails." Shifu finished his move.

Oogway picked up his piece, already with it's destination in mind. "Tigress left for one night. That does not mean she abandoned you. Perhaps, before you jump to any conclusions, you should take a moment to consider who's control is really in question." Oogway smacked his lips together and looked out in space for a moment. "I've never really liked that word."

Shifu quirked his eyebrow. "Is there something you want to tell me?"

Oogway gave a humming chuckle. "Shifu, when have I ever done anything but?" Shifu opened his mouth to offer what was certain to be a cutting remark or an exclamation of exasperation, but was soon halted as Oogway finally set down his piece in the exact place that Shifu had forgotten about.

"I win," Oogway stated, pleased. Shifu's mouth refused to close until he gave a groan of defeat and ran his paw over his face. Oogway chuckled to himself.

Tigress came through the doors just a moment, carrying a few containers. "Good morning, masters," she greeted.

"Indeed it is," Oogway replied cheerfully. Shifu gave a less than committal hum in response.

Tigress walked up to them and set down two containers by their side. "I thought you might appreciate a bit of a souvenir. They come from the best noodle place in the entire valley. Or so I've been told."

Oogway smiled up at her knowingly. "Thank you, Tigress."

Shifu was quiet for a moment. 

Tigress's smile faltered for a bit. "Master? Is something the matter?"

Shifu shook his head. "It's nothing," he said quietly. "Thank you."

Tigress smiled and headed back out the doors. Oogway let them close before examining the container that she had left.

A savory smell wafted up from where he opened the lid. Oogway smiled to himself. "Ah, tang yuan. I can't remember the last time I had this."

Shifu looked into his own container. "Neither can I," he almost whispered. 

Oogway smiled at his student. "Then perhaps we should enjoy these before our next game. Best two of three?"

Shifu put the lid back on his container. He stood up. "I'll go get the chopsticks."

* * *

It didn't take long for Tigress to gather the rest of the students. All she really had to do was to tell them to meet at the kitchen in about five minutes. 

"So. . ." Mantis said leadingly. "What's all this about?"

Tigress simply smirked and set the containers on the table, one for each of the students. 

Monkey wasted no time in looking inside. "Ooh! I remember sharing these with my brother!"

"I know that most of you weren't able to be with your families last night, so I thought I'd bring something of a consolation prize," Tigress said.

Soon enough, all of the five opened their containers. A round of quiet admiration for the desserts inside swept through the room. The rest of the students offered their thanks and began to help themselves.

"So, Monkey," Viper said in between bites. "You have a brother?"

Monkey leaned back in his seat. "Yeah. We haven't really talked much recently though. He took a career path that our mother didn't exactly like."

"Well that sucks," Mantis said.

"Yeah. He'll come to his senses one of this days, though. I'm sure of it." He looked around the room. "So does anyone else want to talk about their family?"

Viper nearly jumped at the opportunity. "I have my sisters! I haven't had much time to write them lately, but we share everything. My littlest sister, Bai, just started to get her fangs last summer. Then there's-" from this point on, Viper went through her entire family's history, starting from her second youngest sister all the way up to her father.

"Your dad was a Kung Fu master?" Crane asked.

"Yep!" Viper said proudly.

Monkey was laughing. "I take it you're parents aren't the empty-nest type."

Mantis gave a chuckle and looked at Monkey. "You think that's a big family? That's nothing. I am the forty-second of eighty-nine kids. My mom had like, _no_ time for any of us one at a time; she had to put us in groups. It was like a giant summer camp. You had to learn to take you got, and learn how to get what else you wanted. That's why I left early. I wonder what she's doing right now?" he finished with a mandible to his chin.

"And where was your father during all of this?" Viper asked.

"Oh yeah, Dad was doing fine. Mom bit his head off at the moment of conception."

As Crane's beak dropped in shock, silence rushed in to strangle the room. 

Mantis rolled his eyes at his fellow students' disbelief. "Oh great. Here we go."

Crane cleared his throat. "I'm. . . sorry, she _what_?"

Mantis sighed and held out his mandibles. "It's this thing that happens between mantises during mating. It's completely natural, and completely normal, alright?"

"Normal. . ." Viper repeated, not quite believing.

"There are birds that lay eggs almost the size of their body and _this_ is what weirds you guys out?"

Crane offered an apologetic smile. ". . . A little, yeah."

Mantis paused to think over his response. "Okay, yeah, it is a little bit weird, but I promise you guys this is legit. For instance, if yours truly found a nice, attractive female mantis that wanted to settle down and start a family, I would face my end with honor and dignity," Mantis ended proudly.

Viper looked at him levelly. "So does this mean we can expect you to live forever?"

Monkey nearly spat out his drink before managing a shaky swallow. He tilted his head back in a full-body laugh. Tigress gave a small chuckle and Crane laughed in an embarrassed 'I'm laughing but I'm not supposed to be' type of way.

Mantis stared for a moment, surprised before offering his rebuttal. "For your information, Viper, I had a girlfriend back home."

"Let me guess," Monkey said. "She lives in Mongolia now."

"No," Mantis almost shouted. "We broke things off when I moved away to the Valley of Peace."

"Aw," Monkey said adoringly. "You chickened out like a little girl," he said in the same tone.

" _Hey!_ I chickened out like a _man_ , thank you very much."

A round of laughter swept the table at Mantis' expense. Viper turned to Crane. "Crane? How about you?"

Crane rubbed the back of his neck. "I lived with my mom for most of my life. It actually took me forever to learn how to fly, so I couldn't follow in my father's footsteps as a mail-stork. My mom's. . . kinda overprotective of me. Always has been. That's how I ended up as a janitor for the Lee Da Kung Fu Academy. See, I wanted to learn how to defend myself, but my mom almost fainted at the thought of me in an actual fight. So we compromised; I wouldn't be fighting, and I would be surrounded by capable warriors if anything ever went wrong. So yeah, I'd say this is a pretty big step up."

"So how did she take it when you started training here?"

Crane gave a nervous chuckle. "She. . . didn't. As far as she knows, this just another cleaning job. A better-paying cleaning job, mind you, but still a cleaning job."

Viper looked at him in concern. "Then. . . how did you explain when people noticed you in the fight with Boar? She must know that a crane is training at the Jade Palace."

Crane used one of his legs to lift his cup to his beak. "As far as she knows, that's a completely different crane. A very strong, handsome, incredibly talented crane."

Mantis laughed. "And she buys your poorly disguised self-promotion?"

"She doesn't really have any reason not to. I'm her little Xiao Bao," he said, sipping his tea.

"You're name is 'Little Treasure?'" Monkey asked like he had just discovered a priceless treasure.

Crane's eyes grew so wide so that one could see his soul try to escape his body. "See, _this_ is why I prefer to go by Crane," he sputtered. "It fit when I was this little hatchling without my real coat of feathers, just waddling around the house; but as soon as my adult feathers started to grow in, it just became this weird pet name that everybody else had permission to call me. I actually started to go by Crane as soon as I got my janitor job. I saw a few of the masters and students doing it and thought I would give it a try. Certainly felt better."

Viper smiled. "Don't worry, you're secret's safe with us." Viper swung her head to glare at Monkey and Mantis. "Right, guys?" she asked severely. After glaring hard enough to earn their nods, she turned to Tigress. "Guess that just leaves you. What about your family, Tigress?"

Tigress gave a small smile. "Master Shifu is the closest thing I have. He was the one who taught me how to control my strength. He would throw these dominoes up in the air until I could catch them without breaking them. Self-control came naturally after that."

"Oh," Viper said. "No blood relatives?" she said gently.

Tigress shook her head. "Not that I know of. It's not all bad, though." She lifted her tang yuan and smiled. "If anything, it's gotten better."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *hands you a box full of randomly collected headcannons* Here, do with this as you will.


	9. Red

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chinese New Year: a time of family and change.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Attention: my dear readers!  
> I am proud to announce that from this point on; I will no longer be continuing this fic!  
> (Super Mario World victory theme plays.)
> 
> Calm down, I’m completely joking on that front.  
> I _Will _be continuing this fic, but updates will probably slow down from “late every night” to “whenever I can get a chapter done.” College is starting to pick up and I have to balance my workload.__
> 
> _  
> _Seriously, Thank You everyone who is reading this thing. This fic has gone from my weird red-headed step-child to my precious baby who I would do anything for. The love that you guys have shown this thing has done that. Be proud. Be _very _proud!___  
> _

"A little to the left," Oogway called. "A little more."

Shifu soon walked out near the palace entrance. "What is going on here?" he asked.

"Ah, Shifu, you're just in time," Oogway said, ignoring the grunts coming from the geese and pigs assembled. "Tell me, do you think this sign is centered enough? I think it might need to go a little bit left."

Shifu spared the sign a glance. "It looks fine, but. . . why is it there?"

"Well it's not there quite yet," Oogway said, slightly defensive.

Shifu sighed. "Alright then, why is it _going_ to be there?"

"The Spring Festival is coming up," Oogway offered. "People put these up on the entrance of their homes to welcome in good fortune."

"But this is a place of learning," Shifu pointed out. 

"Are you saying that the Jade Palace _isn't_ our home?" Oogway asked in shock. It was hard to tell if he was faking or not. He turned back to the sign. "Hmph. No one bothered to tell me," he said in what could be called his closest imitation of indignance.

Oogway started to wave the palace employees away. There was a collective sigh of relief as they started to slowly lower the sign. Shifu looked at the sign as it descended. It was a red diamond shape with a 'fortune' character painted upside down.

"Wait!" Shifu called just before it hit the ground. Their was a collective grunt coming from the employees as the strained to keep the sign aloft. Shifu spared Master Oogway a glance. "I think you might be right, Master Oogway. It _does_ look a little off-center." Addressing the keepers he called out. "Higher! And a little to the left!"

(Zeng felt like crying.)

* * *

Tigress figured she had enough time to run this one errand. The sign wouldn't be up without the help of the students, despite the pigs and geese's best efforts, and the students were mostly unavailable. Most of them were preparing to visit their families for the welcoming of the new year.

Crane, having had experience as a janitor, had felt a moral obligation to help a few of the keepers sweep up around the palace. "The spring cleaning was always a nightmare at the academy," he explained when Viper asked. "I don't even know where all of that dust came from, considering most of the academy had wood floors."

"So does this mean you're going to be spending the festival at the Palace?"

"Dear ancestors, no," Crane scoffed. "My mom almost cried a literal river when I couldn't make it to the Winter Festival, there's no way I'd miss the Spring Festival too. Besides, I don't want to end this year on a bad note."

Mantis soon hopped up. "Oh, hey, my family's in an area pretty near where yours is, would you mind giving me a lift?"

"Ooh, me too," Viper said. "I can't wait too see all my sisters. I wanna see little Bai's fangs for myself."

Crane sighed in resignation. "Crane the living lift; that's me."

Tigress smiled as she left the trio. She soon made her way to the entrance, where master Shifu was trying to organize the hanging of the sign into a more manageable feat. She made the sign of respect to her master on her way out. "Master."

"Tigress," master Shifu greeted. "Where are you going?"

"I just have an errand to run down in the valley. I promise that it won't take too long."

"Hmm," Shifu pondered too himself, before his attention was caught by the sign starting to slip. "Zeng! Pull your weight!"

As Tigress left Shifu to torment the poor goose, she pondered what exactly she should buy. She knew for certain what _wouldn't_ work. She was reasonably sure that as long as she stayed clear of what wouldn't work, it would turn out fine. All the same, that seamed like a minimalist approach to this, and she wanted this to go as well as it could. Otherwise, it would leave her feeling worse.

About halfway down the palace steps, she heard a voice call out from behind. "Tigress, wait up!"

Tigress turned around. "Monkey," she greeted. "Do you have business in the valley too?"

"Actually, that's where I'm spending the festival," Monkey said. "My family's actually been here for a few generations. I was thinking that maybe we could walk down there together."

Tigress nodded and the two set off. Monkey was only quiet for the first few minutes, before he turned their walk into a chance to test out a slew of jokes that had come to him over the year. Most of them were, in Tigress's perfectly honest opinion, lackluster. 

"And I kid you not, the scholar turns himself into a pickle."

Tigress rolled her eyes at that one. 

Monkey then tried out a joke that had become something of his signature. He soon got lost in the details of the setup. By the time he had gotten his story straight, they had arrived at the bottom of the steps. "And so I say to the guy; 'That's not a banana, that's my wife!'"

Tigress gave a huff and rolled her eyes once again, but this one was accompanied by a smile.

Monkey grinned in triumph, pointing to her face. "There it is! I knew I could do it eventually!"

"You traveled with me all the way down the steps just so you could prove that I can smile?" Tigress said.

"Well I wasn't lying about my family being in the valley. I just wanted didn't want to end the year without seeing you smile at my jokes at least once."

Tigress shook her head in amusement. They exchanged goodbyes as Monkey headed east from base of the mountain.

Tigress headed deeper south, into a more commercial area of the town. Everywhere she looked, red and gold decorated the valley. Lanterns hung from strings that ran back and forth between buildings and above the streets like a giant web. Dozens of extra vendors had set up an open-air market, promising wares that people's families would love. 

Checking to make sure that she could purchase whatever she decided on, she started to browse. The stalls had no shortage of items, from pottery to foods to toys, it was difficult to find something that would be just right.

Finally, one of the foods caught her eye; a three colorful trios of sweet dumplings served on a skewer. She couldn't say that she had encountered the variety before. "Excuse me," she said to the dog running the stall. She gestured to the dumplings. "What kind of dumplings are these, exactly?"

"Hanami Dango," the dog answered proudly.

"That. . . doesn't sound Chinese," Tigress said.

The dog leaned forward with a raised eyebrow and a smirk. "That's because it isn't. A buddy of mine got the recipe on a trip to Japan."

Tigress picked up one of the skewers and inspected it. Colorful, unique, sweet-smelling; it was perfect. "I'll take a few."

* * *

Po lit the candles around the small shrine set up on the second floor of their shop/apartment. "So, why are we offering up our bean buns, again?" he asked.

"Because if anything is sure to please Zao Jun, it's quality home cooking," Mr. Ping said from the kitchen, lugging around a box of onions..

"Yeah, but like; why bean buns? We couldn't make something that sells better? I'm not really sure Zao Jun will tell the Jade Emperor nice things about us if all we give him is our stale seconds."

Mr. Ping scoffed. "They're still good!" he tried to defend. "And they're only _stale_ because people aren't _talking_ about them."

Po leaned over from where he stood to look at his dad. "Shouldn't that tell you something about our bean buns?"

Mr. Ping gave a humph. "It tells me that our loyal customers aren't as loyal as they say they are. And don't tell me how to run my shop. I was running my shop before you were born."

Po paused. "I thought you said I was hatched?"

"Semantics," Mr. Ping said, waving it away. As Mr. Ping started to chop his root vegetables, he noticed a by-now-familiar figure near the entrance. "Po," Mr. Ping called. "You have a visitor."

Po took one last glance to make sure that the candles were lit before venturing out front. "Tigress!" he greeted with his usual joy.

"Good morning, Po," Tigress smiled. 

"Same as usual?" Po asked.

Tigress shook her head. "I'm not here for your noodles this time."

"Really? So what can I do for you?"

Tigress offered a smirk. "Actually, I was thinking the same thing." At Po's confusion, she pulled her paw out from behind her back. "Spring Festival is tomorrow, and I heard this is a day to give gifts to friends, so. . . happy Spring Festival."

Po took the skewers with open-mouthed awe. "This is perfect," he exclaimed. "Thank you!" He took a quick glance to his dad for permission.

Mr. Ping rolled his eyes "No eating in the kitchen. Go out front if you really have to."

Po practically glided out front. Tigress gave an amused huff before walking up to the entrance. She leaned on the wall as she watched him sample the foreign sweets.

Po chewed as a thoughtful look crossed his face.

"Enjoying yourself?' Tigress asked with a smirk.

"Chewy," Po commented, adopting a more high-society accent, "sweet, similar to the familiar, yet also enticingly unfamiliar."

"I think that might be the most eloquent I've ever heard you."

Po shrugged. "I know a lot about this. . . one thing. Besides, it's not my fault that something as Kung Fu turns my head to mush."

"But is it really?" Tigress asked with barely-concealed amusement.

Po gave a laugh in response. He pulled one of the foreign dumplings off of its skewer and held it out with his claws. "Care for a bite?"

Tigress looked at the dessert for a moment. Eventually she shrugged. "Why not?" she said, accepting it. The taste was, as Po had inferred, sweet and unfamiliar on her tongue, but not altogether unwanted. "Not bad." She commented.

Po smiled, before it vanished in a moment. "Oh man! I totally forgot!" Just as quick as he had left the kitchen, he rushed back inside. "Here, hold these for a sec," he said to a stunned Mr. Ping. He dashed upstairs.

There was a crash as Po tripped on the top stair. But that apparently didn't slow him down because he was rushing back down stairs not more than a few moments later. He held out a box to Tigress, beaming. "I got you this. I was going to bring it to you up at the palace, but Dad needed my help around the shop, and I remembered that only students are allowed inside, so I figured I'd just give these to you the next time I saw you. Pretty good timing, huh?"

Tigress gingerly took the box and lifted the lid. Almost disbelievingly, she took out the contents. She ran a paw over the material, like it might disappear in front of her. "This is. . ."

"Bad luck!" Mr. Ping honked in panic when he saw.

"Oooh," Po winced as he heard. "Right, I blanked; you're not supposed to give black things on Spring Festival Eve." Po turned to face Tigress with a sheepish grimace. "E-hehe, sorry about that. Maybe we should wait until next time after all."

Po carefully reached for the material, but Tigress held up a hand. "I'm pretty sure the red will cancel it out," she said. "Besides, I consider myself pretty lucky. I don't think one gift will take away all of it." She closed the lid and smiled. "Thank you, Po."

Po celebrated to himself for a moment. After finishing his clumsy miniature dance, he leaned over the counter. "So is it perfect?" he asked.

Tigress looked away with a laugh. "Don't push it," she warned.

* * *

Back in her room, she tried it on. The top was sleeveless, leaving her arms free. It was red, decorated with an orange vine traveling up the side. The pants were black in color, hence Mr. Ping's panic. Between the two was a white belt.

Perhaps it might not have been the best idea she ever had, but it would be important to know right away. She ran through a few katas, starting in her stance, throwing a few punches, and ending in a high kick. There was no tearing on the top or the pants. There was no restriction in her movements either. 

Her leg lowered itself slowly. As much as she hated to admit it, Po had been right. "It's perfect," she breathed. She opened her window, gazing out at the view. She knew from how the wind howled that it was still cold. It would still be cold for another month or so, when the whether truly started to change. She didn't feel cold, however. She felt. . . red. Red like blood. Red like warmth. Red like fortune.

Just a half of a year, and Po had given her a perfect gift. "How well does that panda really know me?" Tigress questioned.

She heard master Oogway's footsteps creak their way across the wooden floor before they stopped outside her door. "New outfit?" Master Oogway questioned.

Tigress gave him a small smile. "I hear it's a part of the Spring Festival to wear new things."

"It looks nice," Master Oogway complimented. He leaned in further. "It makes you look like Tigress."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (When the Spring Festival concluded in it’s entirety, the Five met back up and exchanged gifts with each other. Viper gave Mantis a green hat, and didn’t get what Mantis was throwing a fit about until Crane explained the word-play at work. After hearing it, Viper reconsidered for a minute before deciding that it was still a pretty fitting gift.)  
> Aaaaaaand I just realized that Tigress wears the same outfit in her flashback that she does in the movie. Oh well. Once I came up with the idea I had to get it out there. Up until this point, I was imagining a sleeveless version of what she wears in Secrets of the Scroll. Figure out the continuity headache for yourself if it matters to you.


	10. Belief

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Belief is a powerful thing. As is it’s absence.

It was only a few months after the year of the dog officially started. The weather had started to become more tolerable. It hadn't quite reached the level of Spring in full, but it wouldn't be too far off now.

It should have been a peaceful morning, but it didn't stay that way. The morning gong had been wrung. The day's training began, and Tigress could see that the others had succeeded into turning their fighting styles into works of art.

Master Shifu was observing them in the training hall, occasionally calling out to remind someone to widen their stance, or keep their elbows up. Zeng threw open the doors and ran in, honking with panic and exhaustion. "Master Shifu!"

Master Shifu's ears dropped as he turned to face Zeng. "Yes? What it is it?"

Zeng held out a scroll. "Bandits! A pack of wolves in the south! They’re attacking the farmers!'

Master Shifu snatched the scroll out of Zeng's wing, before perusing the contents himself. He hummed with thought before he called to his students. With practiced fluidity, they each exited their areas of the hall.

"It seems we have an opportunity for your skills to see some practical use," Master Shifu said.

"You want us to fight off an entire pack of wolves?" Crane asked. Shifu gave him a level glance, causing him to add "Uh. . . master."

Shifu rolled his eyes. "Yes. I do. From the reports, it should hardly be more than twenty. That should be enough for you five to handle." Crane gulped. Shifu looked at all of his students. "I expect you all to look after another. I don't have to tell you what could happen." He took a moment to look each of them in the eye. "Remember, the valley is in your hands." He waved outside. "Now go!"

Tigress dashed away without hesitation, easily falling onto all fours. Perhaps it was the simple display of confidence that made the others follow her.

As Shifu watched them leave, he heard a voice coming from his side. "No extra conditions?"

Shifu jumped at the unexpected commentary, but soon calmed down. "Master Oogway," he said flatly. "Someone really should put a bell on you."

Master Oogway chuckled. "Who's to say no one hasn't?"

The two of them were content standing in quiet for a time. "Is there something you wanted to ask me?" Shifu asked after a while.

"You seem to have found some confidence in your students," Master Oogway said.

"Of course I do," Master Shifu said. " _I_ trained them after all."

Master Oogway hummed. "Perhaps you should put less faith in your abilities as a teacher, and more faith in your student's abilities to learn."

Shifu drew in a long breath through his nose. "Faith has nothing to do with it."

Master Oogway nodded without commitment, before he started to walk away. His friend, it appeared, would still need more time. Still, at least Shifu believed in something again. That was progress.

* * *

"So, Tigress," Crane asked, flying a little ways above her. "Any advice on how to deal with nerves?"

"Simple," she said. "Don't be nervous." She heard the words as she said them. Had her paws not been propelling her forward, one of them would have hit her forehead.

"Yeah, okay. . ." Crane said. "But consider this; I am. Extremely."

"You'll do fine," Viper said. "You're just as ready for this as any of us." Viper's gaze flicked to Tigress. "Well, except maybe Tigress, but she's been doing this a lot longer."

Tigress smiled. "Kung Fu? Yes. Fighting off multiple wolves at once? No, that's something I've never done."

Crane gave an obviously nervous chuckle. "Oh that's. . . that's great."

Tigress looked up at him, an idea coming to her. "Isn't it?"

"Tigress, that's not really helping."

"After today I'll be able to say that I've fought off an entire pack." She fully intended to fulfill that possibility. Po's jaw would drop. "If it helps," Tigress said, "Try to imagine what could go right."

Crane tried it for a moment. His imagination kept failing him. He would visualize a scenario in which something did indeed go right, before something else would go wrong. "Would you mind giving a few examples?"

"You could hit someone's neck at just the right angle so that they fall down. I could punch someone's armor so hard that it breaks. Master Shifu could be impressed with us enough to name us masters." ( _Maybe he’ll tell us he’s proud,_ Tigress’s mind added privately.)

Crane smiled slightly. It was easy to listen to Tigress. It was certainly easier than listening to his imagination.

Meanwhile in the back, Mantis hitched a ride on Monkey's back. "Remind me again why you can't walk like the rest of us?"

"Because my legs are ten times shorter than yours, and I weigh almost nothing to you giants," Mantis said with sarcasm.

"Fair enough."

* * *

The five of them stood low to the ground, hidden among the tall grass. "I count a little more than twenty," Crane said.

"So how do we handle this?" Viper asked.

Tigress hummed, eyes sweeping over the plains. "Mantis, Viper, you two attack on both sides. Strike at the same time, it will divide their attention and their numbers. After that, Crane will swoop down and scatter them. Monkey and I will join you and drive them off." Tigress looked over her fellow students. "Ready?"

One by one, they nodded.

Viper and Mantis went off in different directions, disappearing in the grass and grains.

They waited in silence. Eventually, there was a commotion. Wolves on the western end of the pack had their weapons knocked out of their hands before they know what was happening. The eastern end of the pack found themselves tripping over their feet for no evident reason. 

The wolves' anger rose, as it became clear that there were intruders. Confusion arose amongst them. Tigress nodded to Crane. "Now."

Crane shot up through the air, looping gracefully backward until he was swooping down towards the pack. One of the wolves spotted him. "Incoming!" he shouted. 

One of the wolves held a bow in his hand. He notched an arrow and drew back. Crane saw the arrow flying towards him, and without panicking, without fearing, and without thinking anything at all, he drew himself into a an aileron roll, letting the projectile fly harmlessly near him.

Crane spun until he was a few paces away from the archer, at which point he unfolded himself to reach forward with his feet. He landed hard on the wolf, pushing his head to the ground. Without a second's pause, Crane grasped the wolf firmly, and took off. Crane threw the archer back towards the other wolves, bowling them over.

"Now!" Tigress shouted. Monkey and her burst forward from the brush, and into the foray.

The battlefield exploded into chaos. Tigress was a flurry of palms and claws, tearing through their ranks. She caught glimpses of Monkey jumping from enemy to enemy, somehow stealing a spear for himself from one of the wolves. She saw one of the Wolves seemingly fighting himself, which she guessed was Mantis' handiwork. Crane continued to provided aerial support, knocking wolves to the ground. Viper swept out the legs of several wolves at once, and tail-whipping others across the face.

Tigress focused on the wolves before her, intent on teaching them a lesson they would not soon forget. The rest of the fight passed by in a blur. She was pretty sure she made one of them cry out for his mother. (Then again, that could have been Crane.)

When the wolves had started to retreat, she took status of her teammates. Monkey still held onto his spear, though the tip had broken off at some point during the fight. No one seemed especially worse for wear. The only thing noticeably different was that Crane's feathers seemed a little bit more disheveled. (So it was likely the wolf that had cried.)

She spared them a smile. One that they all shared. The sense of victory washed over them. They stood in companionable silence for a few moments. The silence was broken suddenly by Mantis. "Tigress, look out!"

Tigress turned just in time to see one last wolf charging at her, sword in hand. She did not turn soon enough to evade the attack. The wolf swung, and though Tigress was able to shift back avoid the entirety of the sword, it raked a gash across her side.

Tigress yowled in pain, before Delivering a powerful kick to the Wolf's midsection. The force of it sent him flying backward, and once he scrambled onto his limbs, he threw up. Seeing his dim prospects, the wolf ran off to join his pack.

The others turned to her immediately. "Are you alright?" Viper asked.

"I'm fine," Tigress said. It would have sounded more convincing if it wasn't breathed out through gritted teeth. The ground shifted beneath her, and she would have fallen had Monkey not steadied her.

"Alright, okay," Mantis said in a businessman style of tone. "Let me have a look."

"You're not a doctor," Tigress said lightly.

"No, but I'm the closest thing we have right now." Mantis inspected the gash. "It's deep. But thankfully not too deep. We'll have to close up the wound sooner or later, but right now the best thing to do is wrap it up." He hopped down to one of her pant legs. "I'm gonna need to borrow this." Tigress heard him tear the material free.

"That was a gift," Tigress said, as Mantis used the material to wrap around the area where the sword had cut her. 

"Sorry about that," Mantis said. "But needs must sometimes."

Tigress couldn't really argue with that. She leaned on Monkey for support, but she stood. "We should head back."

"Are you sure you're in the right condition to walk all the way back?" Mantis said.

"I'm fine," Tigress said.

It was the first time that the other students could recall not believing her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do not worry folks, things WILL turn out alright. It’s not like I’ve lied to you guys before.


	11. In Need

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which nobody thinks that Tigress is fine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that this took a while to get out. I’m kind of proud of how it turned out though. I hope it was worth the wait. And Thank You everybody for being so patient with this!
> 
> Me, laying on the table: Seduce me by caring about my wellbeing.

Tigress quickly surmised that the others wouldn't believe that she could walk all the way back if she kept using Monkey for support. To that end, made a statement of not needing anyone's help to walk back to the Jade Palace. Head held high, she marched, leaving Monkey behind. 

The rest of them shared a concerned glance. "Are you sure you don't need any help?" Crane asked.

"I'm fine," Tigress repeated. 

Silence pervaded the group as they walked. Tigress' breath was coming out just a little ways off-beat, like a drummer that had indulged in a little too much spirits before a performance. She kept her breaths as close to even as possible, but they still came out ragged. Not quite shaking, but definitely tired.

The sun burned across the horizon. The wind whispered its way through the grass. Tigress's focus became narrow, almost trance like. Only the next step in front of her mattered. Not the sinking sun, or the one-thousand steps up the mountain, or the footprints already visible, just the rhythm in front of her. Step, step, step. Breathe in. Breathe out. Step. Breathe. Step. Breathe.

Time became almost meaningless. The shadows to her side lengthened, going from copy images to gangly parodies. The trance was broken by Crane speaking up once again. "Hey, guys? It's almost sunset," he said. Tigress lifted her gaze, and noted without much input that he was correct. The sun was indeed beginning to set. "As much as I hate to say it, I don't think we'll be getting back to the Jade Palace today."

"Maybe we should find an inn and stay the night," Viper offered.

Monkey patted his pants, looking for something. "Anyone have money? I don't know of many inns that take credit."

Mantis shook his head. "Sorry, but wallets aren't a high priority when they're your exact bodyweight."

Monkey looked to Viper who also shook her head. "I use my whole body when I fight. I didn't want to lose mine, so I left it back at the palace."

All three of them looked at Crane. "Please tell me you brought your wallet." 

Crane chuckled nervously. "Sorry, I'm in the same boat as Viper.”

Tigress offered a small laugh. "Where would you be without me?" She pulled out her own wallet to show them, before putting it back on her belt.

"Great," Monkey said. "You wouldn't mind footing the bill would you?"

Tigress rolled her eyes, but smiled. "I don't make it a habit to spend money without reason. We make it as far as we can tonight."

She turned around and resumed marching, marking an end to the discussion.

"I'll fly ahead and tell Master Shifu that we might have to spend the night."

Tigress hissed a breath through her teeth. Thankfully, the sound of Crane's wings flapping covered it. She knew, without a doubt, that Shifu would want to talk to her when he found out about her getting cut. She also knew that the conversation would, by no one's metric, be fun.

As the sun sank below the horizon, so too did Crane's words. She glanced up at the sky, noting how Crane almost seemed to turn into a star against the darkening sky as he shrank towards the mountain. 

Keeping her thoughts focused became considerably more difficult. Her rhythm now ran on three-and-a-half time. Step. Step. Step. Shifu is going to be disappointed. Step. Step. Step. You should have seen that swordsman coming. Breath in. Breath out. You're hurt. Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Po is going to be worried. Choke on nothing.

Tigress took a moment to clear her throat as discreetly as she could. Clearly, she wasn't nearly as disciplined as she thought. She focused more on inconsequential details, studying them as if they could tell her where that thought had come from.

The blades of grass had a few lines running up them. The dirt on the road was loose from being scuffled around all day. The night stars looked like the petals on the Sacred Peach Tree when viewed from far enough away. Maybe that's why it was the Peach Tree of Heavenly Wisdom. 

The four of them crossed the bridge leading into town. Businesses were beginning to close up shop. A few, she noted, were a good place to find a set of dominoes. She shrugged the idea away; they didn't have the time for detours right now. Right now, they had to get to the Jade Palace. Now that they were back in town, the prospect of making it back home seemed much more doable, even if her side burned just a little.

Her train was brought to a screeching wreck of a halt by a familiar voice. A very enthusiastic, cheerful, monochromatic voice. "Hey! You guys are awesome!" Tigress stopped and turned around. There Po stood, just outside the noodle shop.

As good as a friend he was, and as much she enjoyed spending time with Po, Tigress hoped that he would forgive her that her first thought upon hearing that was 'Dear ancestors, no.' Not right now. Not like this. Her paw drifted to where blood had stained the outfit, as she thanked whatever being was responsible for her existence for having large paws.

Monkey laughed, and cupped his hands "No _you're_ awesome!" he called in response.

'Dear ancestors, there's two of them,' Tigress thought to herself.

Po laughed. "No _you're_ -" Po cut off, as his already white face turned even whiter. "You're _bleeding_." Po scrambled up to them, somehow managing to trip over his own feet when the stones were worn smooth by foot traffic. "Are you okay? That looks a lot like blood. Is it blood? Is it your blood? Are you bleeding?" Po's questions came faster and less coherent, without pause for articulation or breath.

Tigress held up her paw. "Breathe," she reminded him. "And 'bled.' Past tense. I'm fine."

Po breathed, as commended, and he seemed to have calmed down a bit, but the concern stubbornly stayed in his eyes. "Really? Because when I see that ginormous stain on your clothes, I get the feeling that you're _not_ fine."

Monkey muffled his laugh into his paws. "Oh my ancestors, _someone actually said it,_ " Mantis commented from Monkey's shoulder.

"Really, I'm fine. You can be on your way, now, P-" Guilt cut through her as she refrained from using Po's name. From the other student's perspective, he was just a randomly concerned citizen. It would be best if it stayed that way. "Panda," she finished. For once, it hurt that she sounded like Shifu.

Po didn't seem to notice, or if he did, he didn't let it show. Sometimes it was hard to tell just how much he picked up on. Instead, Po rolled his eyes. "Alright, I guess if China's greatest heroes aren't going to look after themselves, I guess I'm going to have to do it myself."

"Wha-"

Po turned around and gestured to follow. "C'mon. My dad and I run a noodle shop. We've got some spare rooms that we rent out during the Winter festival."

"We really don't need-" Tigress made to argue, but the others were already following him. 

Monkey and Viper faced her. "Food, rest, and a big fan," Monkey said. "What more could you want."

"I feel like I could want any number of things," Tigress deadpanned.

Viper rolled her eyes, a skill that Tigress had unintentional taught her. "Do you seriously expect me to believe you aren't just a _little_ bit hungry after everything that happened today?" 

Tigress opened her mouth, but instead of words, all she heard was an animalistic, primal growl. She closed her mouth once she realized it was coming from her stomach. "Traitor," she told the organ. Resigned, she followed the others as they headed into the noodle shop. She made a show of observing her surroundings. No one was looking, but if they had, they would have assumed it was her first time here.

"Hey Dad," Po called. "Are the spare rooms cleaned out?"

Mr. Ping's head poked it's way out of the windows on the second floor. "Oh, guests! Of course they are," he called, somewhat annoyed. "What do you think it is I do up here?"

"I dunno. Go snooping through my things, looking for stuff I shouldn't have?" Po offered with a shrug.

Mr. Ping laughed. That is to say, he tried to laugh. His eyes darted from side to side. "That's, that's _silly_. Why-why would you think that I would do that? Me? _No_. . ."

Po ran his paw over his face with a tired groan. " _Dad_."

" _I get worried, okay?!_ " Mr. Ping offered pitifully. "Don't look at me," He said, covering his face with his wing.

Even with her side burning, Tigress found it hard to suppress her smile. The Ping family antics wouldn't get old anytime soon.

Po turned back to his guests with a painfully embarrassed smile. "Uh, sorry you had to see that."

Monkey was laughing. "Are you kidding?" he asked. "Dinner, bed, _and_ a show? This might be the best inn I've stayed at and it isn't even an inn!"

Po led them to a table, and quickly got to work making noodles. There was something mesmerizing about watching him work. Tigress, when she had first met him, had never guessed that he would be capable of moving around with such practiced grace and precision. Clearly, she had been right. Making noodles that wouldn't give people food poisoning was indeed a part of Kung Fu.

Po paused in the middle of cutting one of the vegetables. "Hey, wait, aren't there supposed to be five of you?"

"Crane should be back soon," Tigress said.

"I'll signal him down here when I see him," Monkey said. He climbed up to the archway above the entrance.

Mr. Ping came waddling down the stairs soon enough. He shooed Po out of the kitchen.

"C'mon," Po pleaded as his dad literally pushed him out of the kitchen. He dug in his heels at the kitchen door. "Just once! Can I at least get a hint?"

"I'll tell you when you're ready, and not a moment sooner," Mr. Ping said. "Go entertain our guests or something," he said. With one final push, Po was forced out of the kitchen, landing squarely on his face.

"Well I'm entertained," Mantis said, chuckling to himself.

Mr. Ping grabbed the doors to the booth window. "And no peeking from any of you, either!" He slammed the booth shut.

Po picked himself up and dusted himself off. "Sorry about that. My dad keeps the secret ingredient of the Secret Ingredient Soup very secret. Otherwise, it would just be. . . _Ingredient_ Soup," he finished, just realizing how redundant that sounded. "It shouldn't take too much longer."

"Perfect," Monkey said, "Because I see Crane." Monkey put his paws to his mouth and called out. "Caw-Caw, Kee-Kee!"

Crane's groan in response could be heard all the way down there. He landed in the parlor of the noodle shop as Monkey scurried down. "Yes, yes, I'm a bid; I make bird noises. Hilarious."

"It got you down here, didn't it?" Monkey said, grinning.

The booth doors swung back open. "Order up," Mr. Ping called. On instinct, Po ran to the booth, and caught the bowls as they were being tossed, with the fifth ending up on his head.

Po, with more caution than he had ever had in his entire life, turned around and walked to the table.

"You. . . you need any help there?" Crane said, nervously eyeing the bowls.

"Nope. I've got it," Po said. He set them down, one by one, without spilling any of the contents. "Enjoy!" He retreated back into the kitchen, leaving them to enjoy their meal.

As the five of them took the first bites, Tigress suppressed a flash of pride. From Viper's surprised hum, to Monkey's pleased laugh, it was clear that the Ping family had made a winning first impression.

"Oh, this is good stuff," Mantis said.

Crane looked up. "No starchy aftertaste, that's new. How come we haven't heard of this place before?"

Tigress smirked. "The first time Shifu tried this place, he got food poisoning. I don't think he's too keen on repeating that experience."

"Seriously, _this_ place?" Viper asked.

Tigress nodded. "Thankfully, they've improved since last time." Another flash of pride coursed through her as she recognized that from both the broad, somewhat inaccurate view the rest of the five shared, and from her own personal view, it was true either way.

The five of them finished the rest of their meal in comfortable silence. As they polished off the bowls and slurped down the last bites of noodles, they stood and paid their respect to the Ping family. 

Mr. Ping accepted the gratitude gracefully. However, he was quick to discuss prices.

Po groaned. " _Dad_. I offered them hospitality, and one of them is injured. Are you seriously going to charge them? Now's not the time to run a business."

"That's where I have to disagree," Mr. Ping said. " _Every_ time is the time to run a business. I understand the offer of hospitality, but if we offer anything for free, we'll have to offer everything for free."

"That's not the point," Po protested.

"Alright, alright," Mr. Ping said, conceding. "Half off."

Tigress shook her head. It seemed that she had heard this conversation a little over one-hundred times. She paused as she realized that she had lost count. "It's fine," she said, like she always did. "I don't mind."

"For seeing this, I would pay double," Monkey said.

"Do _not_ take that as a suggestion," Po said, not even looking as Mr. Ping opened his mouth.

Tigress took out her coin purse, before one of Crane's wings stopped her. "Don't bother. Look what I brought," he said, holding up his own wallet.

"But-"

"But nothing," Crane said, already taking money out. "I've got this."

Coins counted and stashed away to wherever the profits went, Mr. Ping led the five of them upstairs to the spare rooms. Po watched as Tigress went towards the stairs, after the other four had scaled them. "You want any help?" he asked.

Tigress, one foot on the first step shook her head. "No thank you. I'm fine." She pushed herself up to the second step. She wasn't expecting the stab of fire on her side, but she hid her wince and sharp inhale as best she could. Evidently, she did not hide it well enough.

Before she could take another step, she felt her arm being dragged across Po's shoulders, (or at least as far across his shoulders as she could reach,) and his arm supporting her side. "Yeah, no," Po said. "You're getting help whether you like it or not."

"Th-that's not really necessary," Tigress said, an unfamiliar heat rising to her face.

Po's emerald eyes locked directly onto her. "You just took one step and you already look like you're pushing yourself," he said with obvious incredulity. "Just let me help, alright?"

It became too much to look at him directly. Tigress's gaze shifted to the side, tucking her head away. ". . .Thank you."

Leaning on him for support, the two of them scaled the stairs. Only when they were directly on the second floor, and her feet were sure under her, did Po's arm leave her side. The warmth that it left seemed to linger forever. As Mr. Ping showed each of them to their rooms for the night, they gave their thanks in turn. 

Tigress felt the need to bow in her respect to the goose. "Thank you, Mr. Ping. I can't think of how to pay you pack enough."

Mr. Ping smiled. "You've already become a regular patron of my store. That's enough for me. For both of us."

Tigress smiled as she closed the door, wishing Mr. Ping a good night. She examined the room she had been given. It was sparse, but still accommodating: perfect for guests. 

She laid down on the mattress, softer than she was used to. As she closed her eyes, she absorbed the wood-creaking sounds that told of the Pings closing up shop. She absorbed the smells that were left around the room. They told of random strangers that needed a place to stay for the winter festival, but through the mess of unfamiliar scents, there was also Po and Mr. Ping, coming in every now and again to clean up.

By no means was this the Jade Palace. It was too soft, and too warm to truly feel like like the Jade Palace. All the same, it felt like some kind of home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In other news, this has officially become my largest work in terms of hits, comments, subscriptions, kudos, AND is nearly tied with “To Have Spark” as my longest work. (Counting the Wattpad release of that fic, that is.)


	12. Sound

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tigers have very sensitive hearing. They are also very territorial. Po is about to learn this the hard way.

Tigress slept soundly and quietly, until the middle of the night. It had taken surprisingly little to fall asleep. The sounds of creaking floorboards groaned their way past the doors of her room and into her ear. Muted and faint they may have been, they woke her up.

Tigress lifted her head slightly, confused at first as to where she was and why she was there, before memories caught up. Her confusion then shifted as to what had woken her up. She tried to sit up in her bed, before her side made her lie back down with a wince.

She strained her ears, examining the seemingly endless silence. Muted through wood, she could still hear footsteps and the sounds of something being shifted to the side, and the sliding scrape of ceramics.

Tigress pushed herself out of bed, sliding down to all fours. She glided along the floor of the second story. The sounds were coming from downstairs. She propped one paw against the wall, and taking deep breaths, she lowered herself down the stairs, one at a time.

She reached the end of the stairs, and peered over the edge. She was right, someone was down here, scrounging through the shop.

Without giving time for second thoughts, she pounced, catching the person's arm behind their back. She pulled it behind them as she planted a foot on their head. "Who are you?!" She demanded. "What are you doing here?!"

She was answered by a very familiar voice repeatedly going "Owowowow," and a paw rapidly tapping the floor.

Tigress faltered. "Po?" she asked in surprise. She dropped the arm and lifted herself off of him.

Po rolled himself onto his back, rubbed his wrist and gave a wave. "Hey Tigress. Sleeping well?"

"What are you doing up in the dead of night?" Tigress said, still not quite certain that this wasn't some kind of fever dream.

"What am I doing up?" Po echoed, scooting up to sit. "What are _you_ doing up? You're the one that got cut, if anyone should be asleep it's you."

Tigress' paw placed itself on her forehead. "I thought you were a robber," Tigress said with exasperation. "What's your excuse."

"Who me?" Po said, like it could be anyone else. "I was just. . . just helping myself to little midnight snack," he gave a small laugh.

Tigress' eyes scanned the room, observing the number of crumbs and scattered bowls and jars. "That must have been quite a snack," she remarked drily. 

"What can I say; I'm a growing boy," Po said with an uneven attempt of a smile.

Tigress stared at him levelly for a few moments, watching his smile die. "Po," she said. "What are you really doing up?"

Po sighed. "When I'm sad or stressed out, I eat. I'm not even hungry, but having something that tastes nice to chew on helps a little bit."

Tigress hummed, before lowering herself carefully to sit down. Po made to help her, but backed off when he saw that she had things handled. Tigress hummed without judgement. "That doesn't really sound like the healthiest coping mechanism," she said gently.

Po grabbed one of the bean buns, which were uncharacteristically fresh. "Maybe not," he admitted, before taking a bite. "But it is the tastiest." He offered one of the buns. "Care for a bite?"

Tigress looked like she wanted to say something, but settled for simply shaking her head.

"So," Po said, "How do you cope?"

"With what?" Tigress asked.

Po shrugged. "Everything. You defend the valley from pretty much every band of bandits and ne'er-do-wells. You can't tell me that doesn't get stressful. And from what I hear, Master Shifu's a pretty tough case."

Tigress huffed, a small smile forming. "He's not so scary once you get to know him. I go out into the woods near the palace and punch Ironwood trees."

Po winced. "Ironwood? Wouldn't that hurt?"

Tigress nodded. "You get used to it."

Po hummed. ". . . Can I be completely one-hundred-percent honest? 'Cause it might come off as pretty blunt and whatever."

Tigress gave a small laugh, grimacing slightly as her side acted up. "Po, I have never known you to be anything but honest. But bluntness? From Ping Po? This should be interesting."

"Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you," Po said. "Last chance to back out."

Tigress raised her eyebrow. "I'm waiting."

"Okay, alright then. Here it goes," Po said. He took a deep breath, as if this single act of bluntness was going to require every once of fortitude he could muster. He opened his eyes. "You're coping mechanism doesn't really sound all that better than mine."

". . . Really?" Tigress said. She had been expecting a bit more. 

"Yeah."

". . . Care to explain," Tigress said.

Po sighed. "Alright. This is also gonna be really blunt so are you ready?"

Tigress huffed. Did he really think he could hurt her if that was as blunt as he could be? "Do it," she challenged.

"Again; you were warned," Po said, before taking another deep breath. "Life hurts you, and the best solution you can think of is to punch things until you hurt worse than whatever's getting you down, so that way everything seems smaller by comparison? Somehow, I don't really think that's quite the way to go about it."

Tigress paused. The words echoed and rattled themselves around in her skull. Feeling a familiar heaviness in her bones, she turned her head. "I. . . suppose I _was_ warned." She looked down at her paws. "It does work however. The more I do it, the less it hurts."

Po paused, thinking on whether or not he should say more. His mouth outran his mind, however. "Does it?" he asked. Seeing that the words had escaped him, he decided to continue. "Or are you just. . . getting used to hurting?"

Tigress wanted to respond, but found that she had no response to give. At last, another thought crossed her mind, which she voiced for the simple need of another subject. "What made you stressed out enough to come down here anyways?" As soon as the words left her mouth, she realized that perhaps silence would have been more comfortable. Po was silent for a few moments. ". . . You don't have to answer if you don't want to," Tigress added.

"No, no, I probably should," Po answered. "It's just. . . I noticed that you didn't use my name." Immediately, Tigress felt an ache in her bones that had nothing to do with her injury. "You. . . acted like you didn't know me," Po continued. "I totally get it if you say yes, but, I gotta know." Po leveled his eyes to look Tigress directly in hers. "Are you sorry to know me?"

Tigress jaw dropped. 

Po continued. "I mean, I totally get it. I'm really loud, and sometimes I get into people's personal space. I trip over my own feet and one time my tail got stuck in the noodles and somebody got an extra serving of dandruff with their noodles-"

Tigress' paws shot out, landing squarely on Po's shoulders. "Po," she said seriously. "Look at me," she said in a tone that, while gentle, brokered no argument. He looked. "I could never be sorry to know you."

Po eyes went wide. Tigress offered a smile. Then Tigress felt a pair of soft, furry arms around her as Po went limp with relief. After a short beat, Tigress brain caught up, and realized what was happening. Tigress stilled, her arms still hanging in the air before she slowly, tentatively, returned the gesture. She was surprised by how much of Po she was able to fit between her arms. After it became obvious that Po wouldn't disappear if Tigress touched him, he pulled away.

"Thank you," Po said.

Tigress smiled, unable to look at him directly, yet also unable to look away. 

Po smiled, before his eyes went wide in that way they did when he was awed by something. "Woah," he said, mostly to himself.

Tigress straightened, "What?" she asked.

"Your eyes," Po said, leaning closer.

"My eyes?"

"The glow in the dark," Po exclaimed. "I'm surprised I didn't notice before," he said laughing. He shifted around to his knees, and tried looking at them from various angles. "That's so cool! Are they like candles? Or do they like, shoot out these sunbeam thingies?"

Tigress had to put a paw to his forehead as he leaned in. "Po," she said with obvious amusement. She pushed him back. "You were just talking about boundaries."

"Oh, yeah," Po said. "I guess I was. But still that's really cool."

Tigress laughed. "I'm glad that my eyes have your approval," she said with an amusement that spoke of irony.

Po laughed heartily, settling back into where he sat. Silence settled around the floor, enwrapping the two of them like a blanket. A blanket that Po soon tore. "So. . . . why exactly _did_ you act like you didn't know me?"

Tigress smile dropped, before she sighed. She had no doubt that Po would forgive her if she chose not to answer, but so far tonight he had been nothing but honest and helpful. She felt like she owed it to him to be the same. "This place. . . it's special."

Po waited patiently for her to continue.

"It's more than a noodle shop. I don't really know if this makes much sense but. . . my name sounds different when I'm here than when I'm at the Jade Palace. It means different things." Tigress took a breath. "At the Palace, Tigress means being Shifu's second-best model student. Tigress means being stronger, working harder, and being almost- _almost_ \- better than everybody else in the same position. But here? Here, Tigress doesn't mean any of those things. I can hear the difference. Here, Tigress means someone you're happy to see. It means friend. It means 'this impressive creature decided I'm worth her time.'" 

Tigress sighed before continuing. "People around the palace, other than Oogway, don't really know this place all too well. They know the restaurant, but they don't know the _place_." Tigress paused. "Am I making sense?"

Po nodded, but Tigress suspected that even if she weren't, he would want her to keep going anyways. "Seeing you and your father be so excited to see me. . . it felt like something special. Like something that was made for me. And I wanted to keep that something special to myself."

Po nodded. "So, you were worried that if I met the other students, I'd see you as less special?"

Tigress looked to the side, slightly embarrassed. "That was part of it, yes."

"'Part of it'?" Po echoed. "There's more?"

Tigress nodded. "It also works the other way around. Like I said, Tigress at the Palace means someone strong. I was worried that if people knew that I come down here regularly to indulge in a little bit of hero worship, then they'd think less of me."

Po paused. "'Hero Worship,?'" He put his claw to his chin. "Okay, yeah, there is a little bit of that. But you gotta know that I don't like you _just_ because you're a hero."

Tigress looked back up at Po. "Really?"

Po smiled. "It's like you said. Tigress means friend here. It's nice to spend time with friends. Nothing wrong with that."

Tigress smiled and leaned back against the wall, allowing herself to relax. "Thank you, Po."

"Hey, there's my name," Po said with a laugh. "Now you just have to do that in front of other people."

Tigress laughed. "Sorry, but there's one last reason to keep this a secret. I promise this is a good one."

"Oh really," Po challenged.

Tigress nodded. "Viper," she said simply. Po stared at her, unimpressed. It seemed like she had taught him more than just how to kick over vegetable cartons. "Viper's a caring soul. I'm glad she came to the Palace. Really, I am. However, she also thinks she's a matchmaker."

Po's paw covered his mouth as he tried to muffle a laugh. "Seriously? What makes you say that?"

"Crane mentioned having a girl that he writes to back where he's from. Viper read too much into it near the start of winter and she still hasn't gotten off his back about. She's resorted to innocently slipping references to his love life when Crane's least expecting it. I like Crane too. But I do not envy his position a single bit."

The two shared a laugh between them. "Yeah, okay, I can see how that would be a pain," Po said. "I don't know if you've noticed, but my dad kinda knows _everything_." Po laughed, before looking Tigress squarely in her eyes. "I don't mind if you want to keep our friendship secret, but you have to promise me that you know that you don't _have_ to."

Tigress smiled. "Alright. One day, I'll let the others in on this."

Po smiled. "All I needed to hear."

The two sat in silence, before Tigress spoke again. "So am I going to find you down here again?"

Po shook his head. "Nah, I'm not stressed anymore. Not tonight anyway."

Tigress' smile fell, before she sighed. "You can't keep eating away your problems. I can't keep hitting away mine. So what do we do instead?"

"Is there anything that you like to do besides Kung Fu?" Po asked.

Tigress thought for a moment. "I _have_ been meaning to buy some dominoes."

"Ooh! I think I have a set somewhere," Po said. "You could put one down and, I dunno, say something you want to happen? Then you knock 'em all down in a row and tell yourself that's how things are gonna be."

Tigress smiled. "That sounds like a wonderful idea."

She watched Po scramble to his feet and begin searching the cupboards. 

"Wait, you're going to find them right now?" Tigress asked.

Po peaked from under one of his arms. "Well yeah. You need a set. I don't use mine a lot. Seems pretty simple to me."

Tigress shook her head, chuckling. Po's generosity was not something that she, or anyone else except for maybe Mr. Ping, could deter. "You can give them to me in the morning," she said. "For now, you need to get back to bed."

Po sighed. "Alright," he said. He walked back over to Tigress, easily sweeping her back to her feet and sliding her arm over his shoulder. "But you're going back to bed too," he said.

Tigress laughed and shook her head, knowing there was little she could really do to stop him. "I'm surprised at how well you can help me up the stairs."

Po smiled. "Kung Fu exercises. They come in handy."

Po refused to leave her side until she was in her room, even helping her into sit down and lie down into her bed. Coming from any other source, except Oogway and/or Shifu, Tigress would have found this much help patronizing. However, from Po, she only felt concern and care. It made her feel warm in a way that was unbecoming for the early-year season they were in.

"Do _not_ let me catch you downstairs again," she said, pointing at him as he was about to leave the room.

Po held up his wrist, giving a small laugh. "Don't worry, I think I learned my lesson." He held the door in his paw, closing it slowly. "Goodnight, Tigress."

Tigress smiled as the door creaked. "Goodnight, Po."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another summary  
> T: You stay positive. You always believe everything’s going to work out. How do you do it?  
> P: Well, I’ll tell you my secret.. . . I lie to myself. Everyday, when I wake up, I say “everything’s going to be okay,” but I’m l y i n g. . . And I don’t know how much longer I can do it! (Wheeze) Welp, have a swell night!


	13. Failure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which things go actually better than expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another LoA character is mentioned this chapter. Don’t know if anything will come of it, but I like the character and wanted to establish that he at least exists in this universe.

Tigress could feel the set of dominoes in her bag. It's weight felt important, tangible, like it held more than just a set of dominoes.

The air was bright and clear this morning. Sunlight cut down onto the valley uninterrupted by clouds. The cool air bit through Tigress' fur as Monkey and Crane carried her up the palace steps. She had, of course, raised her objections, but it seemed like no one was really going to take her seriously until she could actually raise her voice without her lungs making her hiss.

She pouted as they lifted her up the stairs, Monkey at her paws, and Crane at her top. "I'm still not happy about this," she felt the need to say.

Mantis leapt over to her side, keeping pace with the others through short hops. "I don't really see what there is to complain about," Mantis said jokingly. "When you have people carry you, you're 'injured' but I try it I'm apparently a 'nuisance' and a 'freeloading burden on society.'"

"Well, aren't you?" Monkey asked.

" _No_. . ." Mantis said, his eyes darting back and forth.

Tigress sighed. "See, that's the problem. I don't feel comfortable with making other people do the work I could just handle myself."

Viper spoke up on her other side. "Well, do you honestly think you can march your way up one-thousand steps with that cut?"

"I've done it thousands of times _without_ a cut. I see no reason why I shouldn't be able to do it _with_ a cut."

"Yeah, but like. . . at what cost," Crane asked.

"I will _not_ let your pride create more work for me before I've even gotten started," Mantis said indignantly.

Tigress shuddered before looking at Mantis with a dismissive glare. " _You_ will not be my doctor."

" _What_?" Mantis asked. "Oh come on! I've done official work before, you know! Remember who it was that Shifu hired to make him feel better the day we first met?"

Tigress rolled her eyes. "Yes. And we all know how that turned out."

The rest of the five, sans Mantis, laughed. "This is a grievous undermining of my work," Mantis said, "And I will not stand for it!"

It was an odd feeling, being carried up the steps. If she had to guess who among the students would be most likely to be injured, Tigress would have placed herself last. Yet as far as she could tell, she had been the only one to get hurt. Her wound wasn't acting up as much. (Loathe as she was to admit it, Monkey and Crane's help probably had something to do with that.) However, its presence could be keenly felt.

Viper could see the conflict in Tigress. She looked like she needed a distraction. "We should visit that noodle shop again sometime," Viper said.

"Good food, good service, and interaction with our adoring fanbase," Monkey said. "What's not to like."

"Maybe we should make a tradition out of it," Crane said. "Maybe like a post-mission celebration?"

"That sounds like a great idea," Viper exclaimed.

Tigress smiled as the idea was passed around. She certainly didn't have any objections.

Her spirits remained heightened until the five of them reached to top of the steps. She insisted that once the stairs were clear, she would walk by herself. The others paused to look at her quizzically. Tigress emphasized that she had made it to the shop without anyone's help yesterday, which was enough for Monkey to let her down.

She pushed open the gates to the Palace to reveal Shifu waiting for them, a pig, presumably the doctor, standing by his side. "What took you so long?" were his first words. As he strode towards his students, more details became apparent. His fur was ruffled and unkempt, and his eyes sagged even as they blazed with fury. 

Tigress gave a short bow, hands clasped together. "Master, I can expla-"

"Save it," Master Shifu said, holding up his hand. "You can tell me yourself after the doctor has taken a look at you." His gaze shifted to the other students. "As for the rest of you, you can explain how you let this happen."

Tigress saw her teammates collectively gulp. She opened her mouth, but it held no words. She felt the pig take one of her paws. She offered her fellow students a sympathetic glance before allowing herself to be led to her room.

Shifu watched the two of them leave. He took a deep breath as he saw Tigress disappear through one of the doors. His gaze returned to the other students. They all bowed. "Now." he gestured to where Tigress had headed off. "How did this happen?" he asked with an eerie calm.

Monkey spoke up first. "It was after we had dealt with most of the bandits. We saw the pack retreating, and we thought that our mission was effectively over. Our sense of victory blinded us."

"And none of you saw him coming."

"Mantis did," Crane said. "But by the time he noticed, the wolf was already too close."

Shifu raised an eyebrow at Mantis. "Is this true?"

"It is, Master Shifu," Mantis replied.

"Master, if I may," Viper said. "It could have been a lot worse. If mantis hadn't spotted him, it's possible that Tigress wouldn't be here right now."

Shifu hummed. "I'll be sure to take that into consideration." He waved his hand away. "Dismissed." The students paid their respects as he turned to leave. 

He heard Mantis sigh in relief. "Well, that went better than expected."

Shifu turned back around to call out. "Don't think you're off the hook! I just haven't come to a decision yet!" He watched the students scamper off, the fear of the ancestors properly put into them.

He walked towards the student barracks. He saw that the doors were closed as the doctor did his work. Nothing else to do, he paced outside of her doors, his footsteps creating a tempo against the wooden floor.

After a few moments, the doctor came out. "Well?" he asked expectantly.

"The good news is that she should make a full recovery. However, she should stay away from strenuous exercise for at least a month. It will take a while for her to recover. If you can promise me that she won't do anything that could risk reopening that wound, then I'm free to leave her in your care."

Shifu closed his eyes and let out a groan. He had suspected that it would slow down her training, but he hadn't expected it would take an entire month. "Fine. I can promise you she'll be well looked after."

"Then it looks like my job here is done," the doctor said. "Now about my price. . . "

Tigress could hear the discussion from inside her room. For once, she was not especially happy about having sensitive ears. She had a feeling that Master Shifu wouldn't be too happy to learn that she knew a few of the more. . . colorful words he used to describe the doctor's pay.

Tigress turned her focus on examining her set of dominoes. They were plain, yet sturdy. they were obviously made to be used. Perfect. She had little taste for pointless ornamentation.

After Master Shifu admitted defeat and paid the pig, he made his way to her room, gently sliding open the doors. Despite her obviously being awake, he was making an effort to minimize how much noise he made. Shifu came to stand next to her bed, before seating himself cross-legged. 

Silence suffocated the room. It stretched the seconds into hours. Finally, Shifu spoke. "The others told me how it happened."

Tigress averted her gaze. She half-expected him to sound angry, but hearing his measured, even tones was almost worse. "Master, I was the senior student. Whatever happened on the mission was my responsibility."

"I agree," Shifu said. "However, that doesn't excuse the others' negligence."

"Master Shifu," Tigress said hesitantly. "With all due respect, negligence is the last trait the others displayed. If Mantis had been just a tad less perceptive, I. . ." Tigress hesitated, hearing her words as she said them. ". . . I could have died."

Shifu closed his eyes. "I know. That's why I'm making it my top priority to ensure this never happens again." He stood. "You'll be suspended from training until you heal. Once you do, however, I will train you like nothing you have ever experienced." Shifu turned and made to walk out of the room, before pausing at the door. "Where exactly did you get that?" he asked.

Tigress stilled. She had forgotten that she held the dominoes. "They were a gift," she said. "From a friend."

Shifu paused. "The same friends you spent the winter festival with?"

Tigress found herself avoiding direct eye contact. "Yes. The very same. He offered us hospitality for the night."

Shifu hummed but offered no comment. As he slid the door closed behind him, Tigress sighed with relief, the sound of her breath covering an identical sigh from the other end of the door. She laid back into her bedroll, holding the domino up to the air. It would never be anything beyond a domino, no matter how elaborately it could be decorated. Still, there was something else to it. She turned her head and let her arm fall to the side. "I will recover," she said. With care, she placed the domino on the floor.

She fished through the set, pulling out another domino. "Things will smooth themselves out with Shifu," she said, pressing it to the ground next to the other domino. She took out another domino. "I will become a master." The domino was placed in the chain.

There, her plans ran short. She pushed herself over onto her stomach to look at the line of dominoes more directly. Tentatively, she poked the first domino. The other two fell in a short, yet satisfying chain. Tigress smiled.

* * *

After the sun had set, and the other students had been thoroughly exhausted by the day's special training, Shifu stood alone in the training hall, holding the plans for the new equipment. he did not have to look to know that master Oogway stood behind him. "Those are some impressive plans," Oogway commented.

Shifu hummed. "Do you remember when Taotie had the idea to improve the training hall?"

"Ah," Oogway said, "I thought I recognized those plans. Does this mean you've talked with him."

Shifu shook his head. "He still likes to pretend I don’t exist. I looked through his old room. This was one of the things he left behind."

"Hmm. Shame," Oogway said. "We could have used his help."

Shifu hummed in acknowledgement. Silence pervaded between the two. Shifu's ears flicked in irritation once, then twice, before he rolled the scroll up. "Master, what is it you wish to say."

Oogway looked at Shifu gently. "You're students did not fail you, Shifu. Nor did they fail each other."

Shifu let a breath out through his nose. "I know. The failure lies with me. As their teacher, I failed to prepare them for their first mission. I will not make that mistake again." Shfiu unrolled the plans again, beginning to sort out what he would have to have made, and what could be bought.

"You know, Shifu, those plans were put on a hold for a reason."

"Be that as it may, I will not let my students fall to harm again. If it takes drastic measures to make sure they are safe, then so be it."

Oogway let out a sigh, small and easy to miss. Leaving the red panda to his devices, the old turtle could only shake his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to write Shifu being at least somewhat competent at this “master” stuff before the next possibly chapter and a half. Nobody panic, but it ain’t gonna be pretty.


	14. Tea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tigress is stuck on mandatory vacation. She’s not happy about it.

Tigress's recovery was a slow and frustrating slog. One that was not helped by her limited ability to move around the palace. There were precious few places in the palace that could be accessed without going up or down in elevation, either through natural incline or through a flight of stairs. As she found her tolerance level for how much she could get away with before her side started to burn, she started to have a better idea of why Po hated stairs so much; they were more physically demanding than she had noticed. 

It was for this reason that she had been banned from the training hall, the Hall of Heroes, and the Sacred Peach Tree of Heavenly Wisdom. She had wanted declare it an outrage, but she had held her tongue. It only took a few attempts for her to concede her Master's point.

As much as she knew that she shouldn't, she started to resent the other students some. While she was in effect confined to the barracks and kitchen, they not only could go anywhere in the palace, they were being trained harder than they ever were.

Judging from the exhausted groans they gave before collapsing into there bedrolls daily, it was an experience that she had no right to envy. All the same, there was a firm sense of exclusion. Not helping matters was her own boredom. 

She had always felt at peace with her life being dedicated to Kung Fu. Perfecting her style of fighting, learning self control, learning when to let go of that control, it had all filled her with a sense of accomplishment. For the larger part of her life, it was a purpose. Now that she was forced into talking a break from it, (despite her pleas with Shifu to at least let her use the training dummy,) she found herself lacking on any meaningful activities. 

The first thing that she had tried was the dominoes. They were satisfying for a while. The fact that she knew that she was using a gift from a close friend made her happy. After a while, however, she found that there were only so many paths she could arrange them in. She could only set them up and watch them fall so many times before it felt like she was simply exercising her patience. 

Not having many options in her room and feeling a bit uneasy about using the others' possessions without permission, she began to wander, eventually finding her way to the kitchen. For a moment, she considered making something for herself. Her by now half-repressed memories of somehow turning a bowl of noodles into dragon's fire cut that way of thinking off before it even had the time to go anywhere.

Besides, she wasn't even hungry. She had just spent the night catching Po eating for no other reason than the sensation of eating. It would be quite the twist of irony to berate Po's own coping mechanism only to pick up the same habit herself.

A thought crossed her mind. She might not be able to be trusted with any type ingredient that needed any type of preparation in any way whatsoever, but there was still things that could be done here. The tea bricks (*) that the palace had to have brought up were bland, bitter things that could only provide the barest dictionary definition of tea. As long as she was confined to these few areas, Tigress saw no reason not to try to change that.

Besides, as long as it wasn't bottled spirits, there were more advantages to drinking more often than eating often. 

She soon set to work. It was a bit awkward to play hostess to herself in regards to the tea ceremony that she had only ever been on the opposite end of, but she felt that after seeing it so many times, she could at least brew something edible.

After breaking the tea bricks and using the stones to create a fire to heat the water, she heard the floorboards creak behind her. Briefly, she wondered how someone could have snuck up on her, but her thoughts soon narrowed into a hyper-focus. Giving no indication that she had heard, she discreetly reached for a ladle.

She turned around, intent on driving away the intruder, injury or no. She was only stopped from turning the ladle into a deadly weapon by her own self-control. The wooden instrument stopped just barely before it met a scaled green neck.

"Hello, Tigress," Oogway said passively. "Making tea are we?"

Tigress let out a sigh of relief. "I would ask that you don't sneak up on people like that if I thought it would do any good."

"Now where would the fun in that be?" Master Oogway asked.

Tigress shook her head and returned to her work. "Well for starters, you'd be less likely to get hit with a spoon. One of these days, one the students' fight or flight instincts will take over, and it will be your own fault for training them so well."

"If I didn't want to get hit, I wouldn't have become a Kung Fu Master," Oogway said.

"Ask and you shall receive," Tigress said with a jokingly warning tone.

"If you would like," Master Oogway said. "I could help."

Tigress looked at the pot of water, that was starting to get steadily warmer. "I'm not really sure how proper it is for a hostess to receive help from her guest," Tigress said, "But that would be appreciated."

Oogway observed her work, preferring to take a minimalistic approach to teaching her how to brew tea. Tigress felt just a little bit lost, going on her own memories and the general pieces of advice from Oogway. By the time two cups were poured, however, she was certain that what she had made was not likely to spontaneously combust.

The two of them sat down on opposite ends of the table, and took a testing sip of the tea. The taste felt. . . not altogether unpleasant or inedible to Tigress, but bitter and somehow incomplete. "Edible," she commented.

Oogway lowered the cup from his lips. "Why do you not sound very proud of that?"

Tigress offered a small smile. "I heard from a friend that just having something that's just edible means that you've ran out of things that you actually like."

Oogway gave a chuckle. "Well that's certainly one way of looking at it. However, I feel like it means different things when its something you made with your own paws."

Tigress huffed through her nose, though her smile remained. "That it does."

Oogway reached into his sash, taking out a peach. "I have a trick to make this taste just a little bit better." He punctured a hole in it, holding it so that Tigress was sure to see the natural divide down the middle. He then squeezed lightly, sending the peach's juice pouring into the tea in what Tigress felt looked like an imitation of something a tad vulgar. 

Against her will, a laugh almost forced it's way out of her, only stopped by her paw pressed to her mouth. "I'm not entirely sure that Master Shifu would appreciate you showing me this."

"Oh, I know he wouldn't," Oogway said. "But for perspective, we're already drinking something whose original recipe calls for a god's eyelids(*), so I don't think nature's course will make it any _less_ edible." Oogway offered her the peach.

"Perhaps," she admitted, before adding some of its juice to her own cup. After stirring it slightly, she took another sip. The taste still held a bitter undercurrent, (it wouldn't be tea otherwise,) but the taste of peach help balance it out. It felt fuller, more complete. "Better," she said.

The two of them finished their drink in a pleasant quiet. The steam of warm water seamed to have lifted Tigress's spirits a little. After setting the cups away, Oogway spoke. "This was nice. Perhaps we should make this a regular occurance."

"That sounds nice," Tigress said. "It would certainly help give me something to do," she added, mostly to herself.

The smile that Oogway gave her made it obvious that he had heard. She quickly looked away. "Sorry. Not trying to sound ungrateful. . ."

"Not at all," Oogway said, starting to pace away. "I look forward to the next time we try this."

* * *

She had a distinct feeling that Oogway had intervened somehow, because it was the very next day when the other students started to take turns spending the day with her. Crane was the first to come to her room, offering up a flimsy explanation that both Shifu and Oogway had wanted to improve their skills at checkers, and demanded that Crane himself improve so that they could test their skills against somebody else. For this, Crane would need his own sparring partner.

His story smelt false, but she figured she would indulge him while she had the time. The game was a little bit much to take in, but once she had played a few rounds, she found that it was actually much more simple than it sounded.

Once she had a decent enough grasp on the basics, Crane stopped taking it easier on her. She was grateful. It would have been insulting otherwise. Even though she managed to score a few wins every once in a while, the gap in their skill was soon made evident.

Soon enough, she felt done with checkers, at least for the day. She saw Crane panic as she said as much. So she was right, he was supposed to look after her for the day. With this in mind, she brought up how she had been meaning to improve her handwriting as of late. Glad to still have an excuse, Crane brought over his scroll and inkwells. 

The next day it was apparently Monkey's turn to look after her. She felt her stomach drop as he set up his hammock in her room. "This might take a while," he said, tying the ends.

"Monkey, what are you trying to achieve," Tigress asked flatly.

"Quire simple, really," Monkey said. "I am going to make you laugh. At least once."

Tigress laid back. "You're right. That will take a while."

Fortunately, Monkey seemed to have kept their conversation from new years in mind. His jokes shifted from mostly one-off oddities and irony to elaborate stories with a single punchline, usually a pun. By the end of the day, Monkey had failed to get a laugh out of her, but she smiled, their time not having been the torture she imagined it would be.

It was Viper's turn next. She had apparently wanted to stay sharp with her ribbon dancing, and would appreciate a live audience for her practice. Tigress paid Viper as much attention as she could. In fairness, it wasn't hard to get caught up in Viper's dances.

Viper went through all of her routines at least once, twice if she felt like something was off. After that, she started to tell Tigress about a few moves that she had heard about but had never had the chance to try before. With some light encouragement, she attempted to decipher what she had heard about.

It soon became obvious that this particular enterprise would fail. Most of the moves that Viper attempted were things that she only had a vague understanding about. A few others, she had the basic theory down, but felt something missing when translating said understanding into actual movement.

"Maybe it would go better if you showed these to someone who actually knew how to dance," Tigress suggested gently.

Viper sighed. "Yeah, that makes sense."

Tigress, sensing Viper's disappointment, suggested that she tell her about what was going on with her family. Viper accepted this proposition with glee, eagerly divulging all of the happenings with her other sisters. Apparently, one of the eldest among them was being courted by some grass-snake a little ways away, which Viper had, of course, predicted was going to happen from the day she saw the two of them meet.

She had no idea what to expect for Mantis's day. Her worst fear was that he would have free reign to practice as much acupuncture as he wanted. In actuality, he wanted to learn how to be better at massages. 

With nothing else to do, she rolled onto her stomach and let him get to work. As it turned out, he was surprisingly adept at getting aches and cramps out of her body when there were no needles involved.

Her joints popped, releasing tensions that she hadn't known she had carried. She even felt some blockages in her veins become undone. By the time he was done, she had never felt better. Or she would have, if she were allowed to work out. Theoretically, she could sneak out on her own once everyone was asleep, but going out to practice her moves would put her at risk of reopening her wound, and thus, be forced to spend _another_ couple of weeks bedridden.

Throughout the days, however, there were unforeseen problems. Although she enjoyed the time spent with the others, and she no longer felt excluded quite as much, they eft her in an odd state. She spent every night exhausted, but unable to fall asleep.

She hoped that her exhaustion wouldn't show, but by the next time she shared tea with Oogway, it had somehow slipped out. Because of course it would be Oogway who noticed.

It was a week and a half into this routine when it happened. The other students returned from training, panting and only two steps removed from catatonia, like usual. Unlike most nights, master Shifu came with them.

Tigress sat up as Shifu entered her room. "Master," she greeted. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Well to start," Shifu said dryly, "you can get a good night's sleep."

Tigress sighed. "I don't really know what the problem is. I've no shortage of tiredness, yet I can't fall asleep."

"Can you know?" Shifu asked. Silence stretched between them for a moment before Shfiu spoke again. "Do you remember what you were like when you first came to the palace?"

Tigress paused, before smiling. "I was so excited. It was the first time someone had actually wanted to spend time with me. From my perspective my life had become one very large game of catch and dominoes."

"And did you sleep then?"

Tigress shook her head. "Not really. I just lay down with my eyes closed, counting down the hours until the sun rose and the gong sounded."

"It certainly didn't take long for Oogway and I to notice," Shifu said. "You would wake up with all of the attention and enthusiasm in the world, but you had no stamina. At first I thought it was a matter of physical conditioning. Then I walked by and noticed that your breathing was much too even to be sleeping."

"I would pass out in between sets and workouts, and then try to slap myself awake."

Shifu paused, pulling out a flute. "I seem to remember having a solution to that particular problem." There was a pause. Then light wind blew through the room. Notes carried across, filling the air as they hung. Tigress didn't recognize the melody. Perhaps it was something that Master Shifu had only learned recently. Perhaps it was his own composition.

The waves of melody crashed and rocked against her ears, spreading a heaviness to her eyelids. By the time the music had stopped, she was no longer in the conscious world. Perhaps it was real, or perhaps it was imagined, but she felt a warm hand soothingly brush her arm, and a whispered goodnight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (*) In the Tang dynasty, tea leaves were crushed into bricks for storage and trade, sort of like modern day tea bags.  
> (*) No, I am not making that eyelid thing up. According to legend, the first brew of tea was made when a god’s eyelids fell into boiling water. Look it up.  
> We should be nearing the end of this fic, though not the AU in whole. I want to thank all of my readers for being with me through this. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a research paper that I’ve been putting off way too much.


	15. A Choice, An Ending

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Shifu is exceedingly misguided, and no one is happy with that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WE’VE HIT THE 100 KUDOS MARK BOIS!

The weeks of Tigress' recovery went by faster than she thought that they could. She was almost able to forget how badly she wanted to use the training hall, or even take longer walks. By the end of her recovery, she had come to what she felt was an agreement between her and her wound. She wouldn't do anything to aggravate it, and it, in turn, would allow her to do things with everybody else.

Despite her newfound peace with her injury, she was overjoyed when Shifu finally declared her to be fit for Kung Fu again. Except, that wasn't what he did. Shifu had only declared it safe for her to have unlimited range. He avoided taking about actual training. "Follow me," he said.

Tigress wasn't exactly sure what it was that tipped her off, but she had the feeling that something was about to go wrong. Shifu was usually a curt individual, preferring to speak when needed and be left in peace otherwise, but something about his silence felt tense, like a dam just a few cracks away from breaking.

Attempting to distract herself from what was probably just paranoia, Tigress focused on the sights and sensations that she had dearly missed. The cool mountain breeze felt nothing short of life-giving, biting into her bones with a refreshing coolness, and raising the fur to a breathable ruffle. She looked up to the sky. A few dark clouds were on the horizon, most likely bringing in some spring showers. Walking along a few of the stairs, she made sure to bend her legs just a little bit more than was necessary, relishing in the sensation of finally being able to stretch them.

She was expecting some sort of one-on-one physical conditioning so as to make sure that she was still up-to-speed with the rest of the students. Alternatively, she was expecting some kind of review on her moves and katas to ensure that she had not forgotten anything. (That was impossible. Kung Fu was her blood. She could never forget.)

What Tigress wasn't expecting, was for Shifu to stop in the middle of the front terrace, and say "We need to talk."

Tigress stopped short. Caught up in her activities with the other residents, she had assumed that Shifu had moved on from her injury. Apparently she was wrong. "Master?"

Shifu drew in a long breath, before turning to face her. There was no judgement in his face. There was no pride either. "I've been meaning to talk with you about this for a while now. I believe that it is time you made a choice about what your life should look like."

Tigress felt the ground split beneath her, wanting to swallow her whole. The wind no longer felt joyous, instead turning bitter and angry. "I'm not sure I understand. . ."

"Before the month started, you were beginning to split your time between training and visiting a friend in the valley, correct?"

"Yes. . ."

"You also chose to spend the winter feast at his family's establishment rather than attend the master's dinner, correct?"

"I asked ahead of time. . ." She tried to defend. She had the distinct feeling that she was not going to like whatever was coming next.

Shifu nodded. "That you did. However, you will not be able to do this forever. Sooner or later, you will become a master, and then you will have to choose between your friend, and your duties as a Kung Fu master."

"Master," Tigress said hesitantly. "Forgive me for asking but. . . Where are you going with this?"

Shifu closed his eyes for a moment. "Tigress, one cannot walk on both sides of a canyon. Either they fall in, or they tear themselves in half. If you wish to pursue a life dedicated to keeping the valley safe, and mastering the ways of Kung Fu, then I must have your word that you will no longer see this chef's son."

The world stopped working. The breeze, the sun, the ground, it all stopped working. "What?" Tigress looked at Shifu, trying to make sense of it. She could see that he was serious about this. "Why?" She asked.

"It's a question of priorities," Shifu said. "I cannot train a student that would rather be elsewhere, and I cannot leave the valley to be defended by someone who cannot give it their utmost focus."

An anger welled up in Tigress, one that she was unaccustomed to being directed at Shifu. "You don't ask this type of sacrifice of Crane, or Viper," she said evenly.

Shifu nodded. "You're right. I don't. That's because they're not ready to make this kind of commitment. They have not dedicated their lives to Kung Fu. They have families."

Tigress bit herself to keep from yelling. She wanted to ask if she did, but held her tongue. Challenging Shifu would do her no favors.

Shifu paused. "If it helps, I will ask them to make the same sacrifice when they are ready to become masters."

Tigress couldn't speak. She wouldn't like what came out of her mouth if she did. She could only look away from Shifu.

"You have until sunset tomorrow to inform me of your decision. Maybe spend some time in the valley to think it over. Just keep in mind that if you come back to the palace, you won't be leaving anytime soon."

Tigress didn't need to be told twice. At that moment, she could have gone anywhere in the world as long as Shifu wasn't there. She wanted to run, but something weighed her pace down to a brisk walk. 

Shifu watched her leave without any pleasure or satisfaction. It was a necessary sacrifice, he told himself. When she comes back, she will have her priorities sorted out, and she will finally be ready to become a master in full.

A familiar, normally comforting presence made itself known with a sigh. "Oh, Shifu," Master Oogway said. "You were so close."

Shifu shot him one of his signature raised eyebrows. "You really should stop doing that." Shifu closed his eyes to inhale. "What was I close to?"

"Inner Peace. The art of letting go of control."

"And what would you call this? Is this not letting go? Tigress might not return. She could chose not to return." Shifu felt a weight settle itself inside of him the moment the words flew out of his mouth.

Oogway shook his head, and looked at Shifu with a regretfully pitying glance. "My friend, there is a difference between letting go, and pushing away."

Oogway left, his piece said. Shifu stayed, feeling almost like wasting the day just watching gate. After a few moments of silence and stillness, he left for the training hall.

* * *

Tigress felt something must be wrong with her. Her paws carried her on their own. Her vision stung as it grew slightly bleary. She recognized the street that she was on. Just a short walk and she would be at the noodle shop.

She rested a paw on the wall just on the other side of the noodle shop. She debated going in for a bowl of noodles. They sounded delicious right now. Yet she had no apatite.

Her vision grew blurrier as she considered. Subconsciously she knew what was happening, what was causing her eyes to become clouded. She didn't want to admit it. If she talked to Po in this state, he would notice. He would make her admit it. And then. . . he would be a good friend. He would try to help take care of her.

She couldn't imagine going into the noodle shop, and trying to leave anytime soon. 

She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to stop her breathing from becoming too ragged. With head held high, and a pain in her chest, she walked down the street, past the entrance to the noodle shop, and kept walking until she could look back and not see the shop.

It hurt, but she viewed it as something she needed to do. Angry as she was for having made to chose, she still needed to chose. It was a decision that she needed to make on her own, without Shifu, without Po, and without any of the other students.

She had had enough of walking. She fell down to all fours and ran. It was without any kind of destination that she ran. After spending so long in her room and indoors, the sensation of sprinting outdoors was nothing short of heavenly, yet she could find no pleasure in that from which she ran.

She ran past the city limits, and into a nearby forest. She only stopped running when she noticed a very particular type of tree. Skidding to a halt that stung the pads of her paws, she stood. She examined the tree that had caught her eye, briefly shifting the other trees to confirm they were the same type.

She brushed a hand over the bark, finding it seemingly smoother than normal trees (bamboo being an exception). She balled her paw, and hesitantly knocked. The sound and firmness confirmed it. She was in a patch of ironwood trees.

She took two steps away from the tree, and took a deep breath. It wasn't like she had any better ideas. She dropped into a familiar stance, measured her breathing, and focused on the target in front of her. 

She thrust forward with a punch, letting out a roar. She watched in satisfaction as her blow shattered the bark of the tree, leaving a hole around her paw.

She stood still for a moment, basking in satisfaction, and waiting for the buzz in her knuckles to die down. The color drained from her face as she pulled her paw from the hole. It came back covered in metal-like wooden flakes. Among the orange and black of her fur, among the flakes and chips of wood, she spotted it. Red. An angry, deep, liquid red.

She brushed off the wood to observe in better detail. There was no mistake. On her knuckles, it seeped into her fur. She was bleeding.

Her vision swam, but not with nausea, although her legs were becoming unsteady. She held herself against the tree, noting again the hole that she had punched in it. She fell to her knees, before clutching her hand to her chest. Resting her forehead against the tree, she felt the beginnings of a rain shower moisten her fur.

Feeling the rain begin to wash down, she let go. Her breathing gave up rhythm, instead settling for gasps and sobs. Tears fell freely down from her eyes, somehow distinct from the rain. She could feel their path down her cheeks, and falling to the ground.

Po was right. It still hurt. It always hurt.

* * *

Shifu, with the day's training managed, waited by the gate. It was dark, and rain was starting to come down in earnest. He stood with a candle and an umbrella.

Tigress walked up to the gate, barely paying him any attention. Shifu allowed himself a small breath of relief. "So, does this mean you'll stay at the Palace?"

Tigress didn't answer, heading straight for her room. Shifu followed, hesitantly. "I asked you a question," he said sternly. Tigress continued walking toward her room.

It was only when Tigress stood on the other end of her door, waiting to close that she finally gave him an answer. She gazed at him without any warmth, any coldness, or really any emotion at all. "I'm ready to do whatever it takes to earn the title of Master," she said evenly. "If that means saying goodbye to my friend, then so be it. You were wrong about my priorities. Kung Fu is my life. I couldn't imagine my life without it. You were right about one thing, however; I have no family I need to sacrifice."

Shifu hadn't thought that closing the door could make so much noise. Shifu stood silent and motionless for a few moments. He could see Tigress's shadow sitting down. With nothing to do, he wandered away.

Tigress watching the short shadow of Shifu leave the barracks. Only when she could no longer hear the creaking of wood, did she put her head in her paws and sigh.

She sat in silence, before shifting her gaze around her room. There it was. She grabbed her bag of dominoes, opening it up and setting it by her eyes.

She picked up a single domino, and after taking a deep breath, she set it down. "I will become a Master."

She took another domino. "I will earn Master Shifu's respect."

Truth be told, there was only one thing that felt right putting down. As she set the last domino, she felt, more than heard, the whisper that escaped her. ". . . I will see Po again."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Sadly, this is the end of this particular book. This is not, however, the end of the story, or the AU. I will be continuing this in a sequel. As Tigress said, she will meet Po again.


End file.
